There were four principal authority by-elections across England on Thursday 20 August. Labour were defending two seats, Reform UK were defending one and there was one vacancy in Huntingdonshire where Reform had won one of the ward’s three seats at the May elections.
The Liberal Democrats were defending no seats this week, but produced the standout result of the night by gaining St Neots Eynesbury from Reform UK with a commanding swing of almost 30 percentage points. Elsewhere, Labour regained a Reform seat in Barnsley, Reform gained from Labour in Carlisle’s Harraby South, and Nottingham’s crowded six-way contest demonstrated how fragmented local politics has become in parts of the country.
Huntingdonshire DC, St Neots Eynesbury
The headline result of the week came in St Neots Eynesbury, where the Liberal Democrats overturned a Reform UK gain made only three months ago. In May’s district elections, Reform had won two of the ward’s three seats after the collapse of the long-standing St Neots Independent Group representation, while the Liberal Democrats finished third. This by-election represented an immediate opportunity to test Reform’s breakthrough here.
The wider political context made the contest even more significant. At the 2026 elections, the party won 20 seats to become the largest group on the council, overtaking the Conservatives, but remained short of an overall majority on the 52-seat authority. Since then, the minority administration has faced additional pressure after the Green Party just this week left the governing arrangement, leaving the Liberal Democrat and Independent administration operating on a knife edge. This gain lifts the administration’s combined strength to 26 seats, exactly half the council, which marginally strengthens its position.
St Neots itself has become one of the Liberal Democrats’ strongest parliamentary success stories too. The town sits within the St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire constituency won by Liberal Democrat MP Ian Sollom in 2024, and Eynesbury has seen significant housing growth over recent decades, creating an electorate that has become increasingly competitive between several parties.
Against that backdrop, Ian Taylor delivered an outstanding victory. His 1,024 votes and 47.9% share represented a remarkable 29.8-point increase on the previous Liberal Democrat performance, while his 377-vote majority over Reform UK sends a powerful signal about the value of sustained local campaigning.
Huge congratulations to Ian Taylor and the team on an exceptional gain that strengthens the Liberal Democrat administration in Huntingdonshire.
Liberal Democrats: 1,024 (47.9%, +29.8)
Reform UK: 647 (30.3%, +3.1)
Conservatives: 143 (6.7%, -3.8)
Green Party: 118 (5.5%, -12.5)
Labour: 104 (4.9%, new)
Independent: 102 (4.8%, new)
Turnout: 24.0%
Liberal Democrats GAIN from Reform UK
Barnsley MBC, Penistone East
Penistone East produced another reversal of Reform UK’s May breakthrough. The ward elected three councillors in May 2026, with Labour winning two seats and Reform taking the third. This vacancy therefore gave Labour an opportunity to restore the ward to a full Labour representation.
The result saw Labour achieve exactly that, increasing its vote share by more than 14 percentage points while Reform fell back. Eight candidates contested the by-election, including new entrants from Restore and an Independent, making this another fragmented contest where several parties were competing for relatively small slices of the vote.
For the Liberal Democrats, Penistone East has historically been one of the tougher parts of Barnsley, despite the party performing much more strongly elsewhere across the borough. Having finished last in the ward in May, this was never a target seat. Thank you to Andy Waters for flying the Lib Dem flag and ensuring a Liberal Democrat choice on the ballot paper.
Labour: 1,728 (51.6%, +14.4)
Reform UK: 795 (23.8%, -6.7)
Conservatives: 387 (11.6%, -7.6)
Restore: 218 (6.5%, new)
Independent: 87 (2.6%, new)
Liberal Democrats: 70 (2.1%, -3.6)
Green Party: 59 (1.7%, -5.6)
Independent: 2 (0.2%, new)
Turnout: 38.6%
Labour GAIN from Reform UK
East Midlands
Nottingham City Council, Leen Valley
Leen Valley was perhaps the most fragmented contest of the night. Labour retained the seat, but its vote share fell by almost 34 percentage points as Nottingham People’s Alliance, Reform UK and the Green Party all entered the contest alongside the established parties, producing an unusually crowded six-way race.
The by-election took place against the backdrop of a changing political landscape in Nottingham. Labour continues to dominate the city council despite recent financial difficulties and the authority’s well-publicised improvement process following the collapse of Robin Hood Energy and the issuing of Section 114 notices. The council remains firmly Labour-controlled, and Leen Valley has historically been one of the party’s safer wards.
With so many additional candidates competing for votes, percentage changes need to be treated carefully. The emergence of Nottingham People’s Alliance as a substantial second-place challenger dramatically altered the shape of the contest, while Reform UK and the Green Party both entered where they had not previously stood.
This has never been a Liberal Democrat target ward, and the crowded field made it even harder for smaller parties to establish momentum. Thank you to Liz Morgan-Danvers for flying the Lib Dem flag and ensuring a Liberal Democrat choice on the ballot paper.
Labour: 689 (30.5%, -33.8)
Nottingham People’s Alliance: 523 (23.2%, new)
Reform UK: 410 (18.2%, new)
Green Party: 378 (16.7%, new)
Conservatives: 189 (8.4%, -13.3)
Liberal Democrats: 68 (3.0%, -11.0)
Turnout: 31.8%
Labour HOLD
Cumberland Council, Harraby South
Harraby South was the week’s Reform UK gain, with the party taking a suburban Carlisle seat from Labour. The ward is a large residential area on the south-eastern edge of Carlisle, characterised by extensive post-war housing and local industrial estates.
The previous contest in 2022 was effectively a straight Labour-Conservative fight, with an Independent also standing. Reform and the Liberal Democrats were both absent then, meaning this by-election introduced a different electoral dynamic.
For the Liberal Democrats, Cumberland remains a council where the party’s strength is concentrated in more rural parts of the authority. With only four councillors across the 46-seat council, Harraby South was never expected to be competitive territory. Thank you to Stuart Kelly for flying the Lib Dem flag and ensuring a Liberal Democrat choice on the ballot paper.
Reform UK: 560 (46.2%, new)
Labour: 469 (33.3%, -7.6)
Conservatives: 236 (16.8%, -18.5)
Green Party: 29 (2.1%, new)
Liberal Democrats: 23 (1.6%, new)
Turnout: 27.9%
Reform UK GAIN from Labour
A full summary of these results, and all other principal council by-elections, can be found on the ALDC by-elections page here: https://www.aldc.org/category/by-election-results/
* Joe Nutt is a Campaigns and Communications Officer for ALDC
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9 Comments
What is the party doing to improve it’s showing outside ‘Middle England’ ? 1.6% in Cumbria, 3% in Nottingham, and 2.1% in South Yorkshire sends a message the party can’t ignore.
@David Raw
Spot on!
Ahh the gloomsters descend!
Sometimes the party has a run of good by-elections and some weeks it’s just not the right wards.
This week saw stunning success in a part of Cambridgeshire where the party has historically fared poorly.
As sure as night follows day – and even with the party on 72 MPs and on the verge of becoming the second party of English local government – David Raw will find something to moan about.
We are the 5th Party in England, the 6th in Wales & 5th or 6th in Scotland. We are averaging 10% in The Polls, if we got 10% everywhere then we would have no MPs & no Councillors. Would Mr Raw prefer that ?
Of course we would like to be getting more Votes everywhere, the Party is currently taking suggestions on how we do that but all Parties have weaker & stronger areas & in our Electoral System that saves us from extinction.
It is reality that in most areas of the country we are “nobodies”. We have to move out into those areas.
@Paul Barker
“ …all Parties have weaker & stronger areas…”
This is true but to a large extent this is due to the central importance of social class on voting behaviour. The fact that we appear to be weaker in more economically disadvantaged areas – with a lower proportion of ‘middle-class’ voters, merely illustrates the extent to which we have positioned ourselves as a Party that completes with the Conservatives for middle class voters rather than a Party focused on competing for traditional Labour voters.
I’m sorry to have disturbed Mr Barker’s equanimity, when he asks, “if we got 10% everywhere then we would have no MPs & no Councillors. Would Mr Raw prefer that ?”
It would be a better question, Mr Barker, if you asked me if it is a privilege and a responsibility to stand for a political party for election to a local council. Armchair candidates don’t impress anybody, especially in a party which boasts and brands itself as the party of ‘Local Champions’.
I have frequently commented on Lib Dem Voice that we should not take one week’s by-election results (or even several week’s results) seriously. We have good weeks and bad weeks. Whatever the polls say, based on the last fifty by-elections we are currently in third place on 17.4% vote share, behind the Conservatives on 18.30% and Reform on 24.27%.
We have won 24% of the last fifty by-elections which is better than any other party (Reform won 20%). We also have the best defence rate of any major party – we won 88% of seats we had previously held. Reform and the Greens each held only 33% of the seats they were defending.
Yes, David Raw and others are right to point out that we also get some very poor results in some seats which is a concern. However, we are currently getting at least a quarter of the vote in just over one-third of all local elections which is better than the Conservatives and Labour manage.
I so agree with David Raw. Middle England is not the only constituency worth targeting likewise for Scotland and Wales.
Left behind areas and those with under-represented working class communities need hope and support.
The Lib Dems used to step up to the plate and make an effort. MPs were elected in Bermondsey, Redcar and even Burnley.
Now the party puts in minimal effort, vote share declines as the Greens move in; hardly an endorsement of inclusivity.