Local elections test British voters as legislative elections approach

Around 2,600 seats in 107 local authorities will vote this Thursday in England, a few months before the legislative elections, at a time when the Labor Party, the main force in the British opposition, is the favorite to form the next government.

Mayors will be elected in districts, metropolitan districts and unitary authoritieslocal authorities of different sizes and responsible for services such as rubbish collection, green spaces, urban development, road maintenance and schools.

In total, England, the most populous region of the United Kingdom, has 317 local authorities, whose political representatives are elected in alternate years for four-year terms.

In these elections Chamber presidents will also be electedknown as “mayors”, of cities and regions such as London, Manchester, Liverpool, West Midlands, West Yorkshire or Tees Valley, and 39 police and crime commissioners in England and Wales.

The same day there were also legislative by-elections in the Blackpool South (North West) constituency, triggered by the dismissal of Conservative MP Scott Benton after breaching lobbying rules.

Polling stations will operate between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. local time (same time in Portugal) and some results should be announced early in the morning, but counting could continue throughout Friday and Saturday.

Analysts predict that the Conservative Party, in government for 14 years, lose hundreds of seats to opposition parties, especially Laborwhich has been leading the polls for 18 months with a wide and constant advantage.

“Labor” made significant gains in local elections before victories in the legislative elections of 1979, 1997 and 2010.

The next parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom are due to be held at the end of January 2025, but Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has indicated that the vote will take place in the second half of this year, probably in the autumn.