Fact checkPoliticsPublished May 8, 2026
Media reports: “Reform UK won more than 1,000 council seats in the local elections.”. Our verdict: True.

The claim

“Reform UK won more than 1,000 council seats in the local elections.”

Media reportsNews reportMay 8, 2026Read the original

Coverage of results from the 7 May 2026 local elections.

Our verdict

True

Reform won 1,454 council seats on 7 May 2026, the most of any party, and control of 14 councils.

What we found

Counts by HOPE not hate and Pollcheck give Reform 1,454 of 5,036 seats contested. Our first version compared the claim with Reform's December 2025 total and wrongly rated it False.

The evidence

2 of 2 sources support the claim; none contradict it.

Contradict 0Support 2Background 0
  • Supports the claim

    Reform won 1,454 council seats, the most of any party, and majority control of 14 councils. [1]

  • Supports the claim

    Reform won the most seats, 1,454 of 5,036 contested. [2]

How we checked

We checked the claim against HOPE not hate, Pollcheck. We reviewed 2 relevant sources.

Sources

  1. [1]HOPE not hate · Alarm and optimism: the far right at the 2026 elections
  2. [2]Pollcheck · 2026 local elections results

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