Easy News – Local elections, May 2026

1. 

   Local elections happened in some parts of England, Scotland and Wales this month.

2. 

   At the local elections people voted to choose councillors. Councillors are people who work at the Council.

3. 

   At some local elections, people voted to choose a mayor. Mayors who are elected help lead the local councils.

4. 

   The Council makes decisions about local services that affect the areas people live in.

5. 

   These local services are things like when your bins are emptied, keeping roads safe, and how social care services are run.

6. 

   Each local area in the country has its own councillor who is part of a political party.

7. 

   A political party is a group of people who share similar ideas about how the country should be run.

8. 

   Some Councils have most of their councillors from the same political party, this is called a party majority.

9. 

   Some Councils don’t have most of their councillors from the same political party, this is called a no party majority.

10. 

    All councillors must work together in the Council to make decisions, even if they are in different parties.

11. 

    If you would like to find out more about what Councils do, visit: myvotemyvoice.org.uk to download a free guide.

12. 

    More new councillors for a political party called Reform UK were voted for than the other parties.

13. 

    The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats got some new councillors too.

14. 

    Labour and the Conservatives lost a lot of councillors.

15. 

    This has happened in places that usually vote for Labour or the Conservatives.

16. 

    This is worrying for Labour because they are in government. The government controls how the whole country is run.

17. 

    Some Labour members are worried about Keir Starmer's leadership and losing support from people who have voted for them before. Kier Starmer is the leader of the Labour party and the Prime Minister.

18. 

    Recent politics have been controversial. Controversy is when somebody does something that a lot of people don’t agree with.

19. 

    Some new councillors have been suspended because they have said bad things about people. Suspended means they can’t do their new jobs as councillors.

20. 

    The local areas affected might need another election to choose a different councillor.

21. 

    It is important that politicians do what is right for the people who live in this country, like you.

22. 

    If you would like to find out more about politics and how our country is run, visit: myvotemyvoice.org.uk This is our campaign for accessible voting.

Back to top