1998 United Kingdom local elections

The 1998 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 7 May 1998.[1][2] All London borough council seats were elected as well a third of the seats on each of the Metropolitan Boroughs. Some unitary authorities and District councils also had elections. There were no local elections in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

1998 United Kingdom local elections

← 1997 7 May 1998 1999 →

All 32 London boroughs, all 36 metropolitan boroughs,
10 out of 46 unitary authorities and 88 out of 238 English districts
  Majority party Minority party Third party
 
Leader Tony Blair William Hague Paddy Ashdown
Party Labour Conservative Liberal Democrats
Leader since 21 July 1994 19 June 1997 16 July 1988
Percentage 38% 32% 25%
Councils 94 8 14
Councils +/- Increase2 Increase1 Decrease7
Councillors 2,240 1,085 853
Councillors +/- Decrease88 Increase256 Decrease114

Results of the 1998 United Kingdom local elections
Colours denote the winning party, as shown in the table of results.

These elections took place on the same day as the referendum on establishing the Greater London Authority.

The governing Labour Party, contesting its first national elections since returning to government 12 months previously, enjoyed great success, now having control of 94 councils, with the second placed Liberal Democrats now controlling 14 and the opposition Conservatives (now led by William Hague) a mere eight.

A by-election for the European Parliament was also held in the Yorkshire South constituency; Labour retained the seat.

Summary of results

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Party Councils Councillors
Gain Loss Change Total Gain Loss Change Total
Labour +2 94 -88 2,240
Liberal Democrats -7 14 -114 853
Conservative +1 8 +256 1,085
Other 0 0 0 0 -57 146
No overall control +4 50

England

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London boroughs

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In all 32 London boroughs the whole council was up for election.

Council Previous control Result Details
Barking and Dagenham Labour Labour hold Details
Barnet No overall control No overall control hold Details
Bexley No overall control No overall control hold Details
Brent No overall control Labour gain Details
Bromley Conservative No overall control gain Details
Camden Labour Labour hold Details
Croydon Labour Labour hold Details
Ealing Labour Labour hold Details
Enfield Labour Labour hold Details
Greenwich Labour Labour hold Details
Hackney No overall control No overall control hold Details
Hammersmith and Fulham Labour Labour hold Details
Haringey Labour Labour hold Details
Harrow No overall control Labour gain Details
Havering No overall control No overall control hold Details
Hillingdon Labour No overall control gain Details
Hounslow Labour Labour hold Details
Islington Labour No overall control gain Details
Kensington and Chelsea Conservative Conservative hold Details
Kingston upon Thames Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
Lambeth No overall control Labour gain Details
Lewisham Labour Labour hold Details
Merton Labour Labour hold Details
Newham Labour Labour hold Details
Redbridge No overall control No overall control hold Details
Richmond upon Thames Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Southwark Labour Labour hold Details
Sutton Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Tower Hamlets Labour Labour hold Details
Waltham Forest No overall control Labour gain Details
Wandsworth Conservative Conservative hold Details
Westminster Conservative Conservative hold Details

Metropolitan boroughs

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All 36 English Metropolitan borough councils had one third of their seats up for election.

Council Previous control Result Details
Barnsley Labour Labour hold Details
Birmingham Labour Labour hold Details
Bolton Labour Labour hold Details
Bradford Labour Labour hold Details
Bury Labour Labour hold Details
Calderdale Labour Labour hold Details
Coventry Labour Labour hold Details
Doncaster Labour Labour hold Details
Dudley Labour Labour hold Details
Gateshead Labour Labour hold Details
Kirklees Labour Labour hold Details
Knowsley Labour Labour hold Details
Leeds Labour Labour hold Details
Liverpool Labour Liberal Democrats gain Details
Manchester Labour Labour hold Details
Newcastle upon Tyne Labour Labour hold Details
North Tyneside Labour Labour hold Details
Oldham Labour Labour hold Details
Rochdale Labour Labour hold Details
Rotherham Labour Labour hold Details
Salford Labour Labour hold Details
Sandwell Labour Labour hold Details
Sefton No overall control No overall control hold Details
Sheffield Labour Labour hold Details
Solihull No overall control No overall control hold Details
South Tyneside Labour Labour hold Details
St Helens Labour Labour hold Details
Stockport No overall control No overall control hold Details
Sunderland Labour Labour hold Details
Tameside Labour Labour hold Details
Trafford Labour Labour hold Details
Wakefield Labour Labour hold Details
Walsall No overall control No overall control hold Details
Wigan Labour Labour hold Details
Wirral Labour Labour hold Details
Wolverhampton Labour Labour hold Details

Unitary authorities

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Whole council

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The whole of the Isle of Wight council was up for election.

Council Previous control Result Details
Isle of Wight Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details

Third of council

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In 9 English Unitary authorities one third of the council was up for election.

Council Previous control Result Details
Bristol Labour Labour hold Details
Derby Labour Labour hold Details
Hartlepool Labour Labour hold Details
Kingston upon Hull Labour Labour hold Details
Milton Keynes Labour Labour hold Details
Portsmouth Labour Labour hold Details
Southampton Labour Labour hold Details
Stoke-on-Trent Labour Labour hold Details
Swindon Labour Labour hold Details

District councils

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In 88 English district authorities one third of the council was up for election.

Council Previous control Result Details
Adur Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Amber Valley Labour Labour hold Details
Barrow-in-Furness Labour Labour hold Details
Basildon Labour Labour hold Details
Basingstoke and Deane No overall control No overall control hold Details
Bassetlaw Labour Labour hold Details
Bedford No overall control No overall control hold Details
Brentwood Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Broadland No overall control No overall control hold Details
Broxbourne Conservative Conservative hold Details
Burnley Labour Labour hold Details
Cambridge Labour No overall control gain Details
Cannock Chase Labour Labour hold Details
Carlisle Labour Labour hold Details
Cheltenham Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Cherwell No overall control No overall control hold Details
Chester No overall control No overall control hold Details
Chorley Labour Labour hold Details
Colchester Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
Congleton Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Craven Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
Crawley Labour Labour hold Details
Crewe and Nantwich Labour Labour hold Details
Daventry No overall control No overall control hold Details
Eastbourne Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Eastleigh Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Ellesmere Port and Neston Labour Labour hold Details
Elmbridge No overall control No overall control hold Details
Epping Forest No overall control No overall control hold Details
Exeter Labour Labour hold Details
Fareham No overall control No overall control hold Details
Gloucester Labour Labour hold Details
Gosport No overall control No overall control hold Details
Great Yarmouth Labour Labour hold Details
Harlow Labour Labour hold Details
Harrogate Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Hart No overall control No overall control hold Details
Hastings Liberal Democrats Labour gain Details
Havant No overall control No overall control hold Details
Hertsmere Labour Labour hold Details
Huntingdonshire Conservative Conservative hold Details
Hyndburn Labour Labour hold Details
Ipswich Labour Labour hold Details
Lincoln Labour Labour hold Details
Macclesfield Conservative Conservative hold Details
Maidstone No overall control No overall control hold Details
Mole Valley No overall control No overall control hold Details
Newcastle-under-Lyme Labour Labour hold Details
North Hertfordshire Labour Labour hold Details
Norwich Labour Labour hold Details
Nuneaton and Bedworth Labour Labour hold Details
Oxford Labour Labour hold Details
Pendle Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Penwith No overall control No overall control hold Details
Preston Labour Labour hold Details
Purbeck No overall control No overall control hold Details
Redditch Labour Labour hold Details
Reigate and Banstead No overall control No overall control hold Details
Rochford Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
Rossendale Labour Labour hold Details
Rugby No overall control No overall control hold Details
Runnymede No overall control Conservative gain Details
Rushmoor No overall control No overall control hold Details
Shrewsbury and Atcham No overall control No overall control hold Details
South Bedfordshire No overall control No overall control hold Details
South Cambridgeshire No overall control No overall control hold Details
South Lakeland No overall control No overall control hold Details
St Albans Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Stevenage Labour Labour hold Details
Stratford-on-Avon No overall control No overall control hold Details
Stroud No overall control No overall control hold Details
Swale No overall control No overall control hold Details
Tamworth Labour Labour hold Details
Tandridge No overall control No overall control hold Details
Three Rivers No overall control No overall control hold Details
Tunbridge Wells No overall control Conservative gain Details
Watford Labour Labour hold Details
Waveney Labour Labour hold Details
Welwyn Hatfield Labour Labour hold Details
West Lancashire Labour Labour hold Details
West Lindsey Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
West Oxfordshire No overall control No overall control hold Details
Weymouth and Portland No overall control No overall control hold Details
Winchester Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Woking Liberal Democrats No overall control gain Details
Worcester Labour Labour hold Details
Worthing Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrats hold Details
Wyre Forest Labour Labour hold Details

‡ New ward boundaries

References

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  1. ^ Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael. Local Elections Handbook 1998 (PDF). Local Government Chronicle Elections Centre. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  2. ^ "Council compositions". The Elections Centre. Retrieved 3 May 2016.