2024 Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council election

The 2024 Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council election took place on 2 May 2024 to elect members of Walsall Council in the West Midlands. This was on the same day as other local elections. 20 of the 60 seats were up for election.

2024 Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council election

← 2023 2 May 2024 2026 →
20 of 60 seats on Walsall Council 31 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Mike Bird Matt Ward Party Conservative Labour Independent Seats before 37 12 11 Seats won 12 5 3 Seats after 37 14 9 Seat change 2 2 Popular vote 21,750 20,240 7,618 Percentage 37.1% 34.5% 13.0% Swing 9.0% 6.4% 10.4%
Winner of each seat at the 2024 Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council election
Leader before election Mike Bird Conservative Leader after election Garry Perry Conservative

Background

Since its creation in 1974, Walsall has varied between the Conservatives and Labour. Between 1973 and 2004, Walsall had been under Labour control from 1973 to 1976, 1980 to 1982, 1988 to 1992, 1995 to 1996, and 1999 to 2000.^[1] It was then under Conservative control between 2004 and 2011, before reverting to no overall control and being retaken by the Conservatives in 2019.^[2] In the 2023 elections, the Conservatives retained all 13 seats up for election, receiving 46.1% of the vote, Labour gained 1 seat with 40.9%, and the Liberal Democrats received 4.7%. Despite only standing in 9 of the 20 wards, Reform UK received 3.1%, performing best in Birchills-Leamore, where they received 12.6% of the vote.

The seats up for election this year were last elected in 2021. In that election, the Conservatives gained 5 seats with 54% of the vote, and Labour lost 3 seats with 36%.

Predictions

YouGov released an MRP poll, conducted between 14-29 April 2024. Their findings are expecting "significant" labour gains across the country. YouGov expect this to be replicated in Walsall. Their poll has the Conservative Party on 36.1%, Labour on 41.9% and Reform UK on 13.2%.^[3]

Previous council composition

After 2023 election			Before 2024 election[4]			After 2024 election
Party		Seats	Party		Seats	Party		Seats
	Conservative	38		Conservative	37[5]		Conservative	37
	Labour	20		Labour	12[6]		Labour	14
	Independent	2		Independent	10		Independent	9

Changes 2023–2024:

• November 2023: Hajran Bashir, Sabina Ditta, Naheed Gultasib, Farhana Hassan, Khizar Hussain, Saiqa Nasreen, Aftab Nawaz, and Abdus Nazir leave Labour to sit as independents^[7]

Summary

The Conservatives retained their majority on the council.^[8] Less than a week after the election the Conservative leader of the council, Mike Bird, was suspended from the party.^[9] He was subsequently resigned and was replaced as leader by Garry Perry at a council meeting on 3 June 2024.^[10]

Election result

2024 Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Conservative	12		60.0	25	37	61.7	21,750	37.1	–9.0
	Labour	5	2	25.0	9	14	23.3	20,240	34.5	–6.4
	Independent	3	2	15.0	6	9	15.0	7,618	13.0	+10.4
	Reform UK	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	5,171	8.8	+5.7
	Green	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	1,935	3.3	+0.6
	Liberal Democrats	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	1,887	3.2	–1.5
	TUSC	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	101	0.2	N/A

Ward results

Aldridge Central and South

Aldridge Central and South^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Wilson	2,268	59.9	–1.3
	Labour	James Harrison	926	24.5	+0.8
	Reform UK	Irene Henery	378	10.0	+4.1
	Green	Guan Chan	214	5.7	–2.7
Majority			1,342	35.4	–2.8
Turnout			3,786	35.2	+7.0
Registered electors			10,824
	Conservative hold		Swing	1.1

Aldridge North and Walsall Wood

Aldridge North and Walsall Wood^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Keith Sears	1,399	51.2	–2.3
	Labour	Dean Margetts	696	25.5	–5.9
	Reform UK	Lesley Lynch	428	15.7	+6.0
	Green	Shaun McKenzie	123	4.5	–0.7
	Liberal Democrats	Nigel Walker	85	3.1	N/A
Majority			703	25.7	+3.5
Turnout			2,731	27.7	+3.0
Registered electors			9,913
	Conservative hold		Swing	1.8

Bentley and Darlaston North

Bentley and Darlaston North^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Lucie Nahal	952	36.4	–22.0
	Independent	Nahid Ahmed	788	30.1	+8.8
	Reform UK	Stuart Chapman	414	15.8	N/A
	Conservative	Kyra Murphy	389	14.9	–3.1
	Independent	Abul Kalam	75	2.9	+0.9
Majority			164	6.3	–30.8
Turnout			2,618	27.3	+7.2
Registered electors			9,651
	Labour hold		Swing	15.4

Birchills-Leamore

Birchills-Leamore^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Amo Hussain*	1,089	40.6	–6.0
	Labour	Elliot Pfebve	936	34.9	–5.7
	Reform UK	Elaine Williams	406	15.1	+2.5
	Green	Toyin Oshaniwa	165	6.1	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Paul Wild	89	3.3	N/A
Majority			153	5.7	–0.3
Turnout			2,685	25.1	+2.2
Registered electors			10,794
	Conservative hold		Swing	0.2

Blakenall

Blakenall^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Peter Smith*	971	42.6	N/A
	Labour	Ian Robertson	807	35.4	–1.5
	Reform UK	Peggy Coop	230	10.1	+6.5
	Conservative	Ana-Maria Zinica	206	9.0	–18.4
	Green	Andrea Maynard	67	2.9	+0.3
Majority			164	7.2	N/A
Turnout			2,281	22.2	+2.0
Registered electors			10,361
	Independent hold

Bloxwich East

Bloxwich East^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Gary Flint*	843	40.9	–10.0
	Labour	Stephen Wade	814	39.5	+0.6
	Reform UK	Sue Spencer	338	16.4	+11.2
	Liberal Democrats	Angela Hodges	66	3.2	N/A
Majority			29	1.4	–10.6
Turnout			2,061	23.4	+2.3
Registered electors			8,875
	Conservative hold		Swing	5.3

Bloxwich West

Bloxwich West^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael Coulson	1,065	40.2	+1.2
	Conservative	Tony Sadla	1,043	39.4	–8.8
	Reform UK	Nicky Barker	474	17.9	+10.8
	Liberal Democrats	Stuart Hodges	66	2.5	–0.2
Majority			22	0.8	N/A
Turnout			2,648	27.2	+2.4
Registered electors			9,844
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	5.0

Brownhills

Brownhills^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kerry Murphy*	1,056	44.0	–8.6
	Labour	Michael Bruce	779	32.5	–7.6
	Reform UK	Joshua Dixon	401	16.7	N/A
	Independent	Karl Andrews	162	6.8	N/A
Majority			277	11.5	–1.2
Turnout			2,398	25.0	+3.2
Registered electors			9,649
	Conservative hold		Swing	0.5

Darlaston South

Darlaston South^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Chris Bott*	1,612	65.7	–8.9
	Reform UK	Peter Burton	380	15.5	N/A
	Conservative	Owen Webster	360	14.7	–10.0
	Liberal Democrats	Isaac Crosby	103	4.2	N/A
Majority			1,232	50.2	+0.4
Turnout			2,455	23.0	+6.3
Registered electors			10,829
	Labour hold

Paddock

Paddock^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nick Gandham*	1,485	37.3	–12.3
	Labour	Bob Thomas	1,085	27.3	–6.9
	Independent	Ghulam Papu	789	19.8	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Dan Barker	279	7.0	–3.1
	Reform UK	Peter Faultless	187	4.7	N/A
	Green	Gordon Shipley	155	3.9	N/A
Majority			400	10.0	–5.4
Turnout			3,980	41.0	+2.8
Registered electors			9,832
	Conservative hold		Swing	2.7

Palfrey

Palfrey^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Sabina Ditta*	2,134	48.4	N/A
	Labour	Zulkifi Ahmed	1,044	23.7	–26.8
	Conservative	Shamim Ahmed	693	15.7	–24.3
	Green	Sadat Hussain	298	6.8	+1.6
	Reform UK	Dexter Williams	240	5.4	+1.7
Majority			1,090	24.7	N/A
Turnout			4,409	40.1	+8.7
Registered electors			11,086
	Independent hold

Pelsall

Pelsall^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Garry Perry*	1,801	67.2	+7.7
	Labour	Robert Lipke	510	19.0	–2.8
	Reform UK	Graham Eardley	369	13.8	+4.6
Majority			1,291	48.2	+10.5
Turnout			2,680	31.2	+4.4
Registered electors			8,682
	Conservative hold		Swing	5.3

Pheasey Park Farm

Pheasey Park Farm^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Adrian Andrew*	1,614	61.0	+4.0
	Labour	Mark Bradley	825	31.2	–3.8
	Liberal Democrats	Matthew Barker	208	7.9	±0.0
Majority			789	28.8	+7.0
Turnout			2,647	30.9	+6.2
Registered electors			8,655
	Conservative hold		Swing	3.9

Pleck

Pleck^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Naheed Gultasib*	1,459	39.4	N/A
	Labour	Adam Mohammed	1,323	35.8	–40.8
	Conservative	Akbar Ali	557	15.1	–7.3
	Green	Mary Beddows	260	7.0	N/A
	TUSC	Jonathan Stanley	101	2.7	N/A
Majority			136	3.6	N/A
Turnout			3,700	36.0	+13.3
Registered electors			10,430
	Independent hold

Rushall-Shelfield

Rushall-Shelfield^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Jade Chapman	1,068	41.8	–11.3
	Labour Co-op	David Morgan	951	37.3	–9.7
	Reform UK	Pete Page	351	13.8	N/A
	Green	Joe Belcher	182	7.1	N/A
Majority			117	4.5	–1.6
Turnout			2,552	27.9	+4.1
Registered electors			9,248
	Conservative gain from Independent		Swing	0.8

Short Heath

Short Heath^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Josh Whitehouse*	1,093	46.8	+4.2
	Labour	Lee Jeavons	922	39.5	+0.6
	Liberal Democrats	Chad Pitt	322	13.8	–4.2
Majority			171	7.3	+3.6
Turnout			2,337	27.2	+4.4
Registered electors			8,712
	Conservative hold		Swing	1.8

St Matthews

St Matthews^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Eileen Russell	1,430	34.5	–16.9
	Independent	Mushtaq Ahmed	1,240	29.9	N/A
	Conservative	Vandana Sharma	894	21.6	–7.9
	Green	Raja Akhtar	296	7.1	–5.3
	Reform UK	Robin Perry	287	6.9	N/A
Majority			190	4.6	–17.2
Turnout			4,147	37.2	+7.8
Registered electors			11,230
	Labour gain from Independent

Streetly

Streetly^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Keir Pedley*	2,203	60.5	–1.0
	Labour	Harjinder Nahal	801	22.0	–3.4
	Reform UK	Ruby Ki-Kydd	288	7.9	+4.5
	Liberal Democrats	Kieran Smith	176	4.8	–4.9
	Green	Alison Walters	175	4.8	N/A
Majority			1,402	38.5	+2.5
Turnout			3,643	35.4	+6.0
Registered electors			10,400
	Conservative hold		Swing	1.2

Willenhall North

Willenhall North^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Stacie Elson*	997	42.6	–3.6
	Labour	Tal Singh	989	42.2	+6.2
	Liberal Democrats	Benjamin Hodges	355	15.2	–2.6
Majority			8	0.4	–9.7
Turnout			2,341	26.1	+2.9
Registered electors			9,177
	Conservative hold		Swing	4.9

Willenhall South

Willenhall South^[11][12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Klara Margetts	1,773	68.1	+5.2
	Conservative	Walter Eze	692	26.6	–0.7
	Liberal Democrats	Leandra Gebrakedan	138	5.3	–4.5
Majority			1,081	41.5	+6.3
Turnout			2,603	22.8	+4.2
Registered electors			11,669
	Labour hold		Swing	3.0

References

1. "Walsall Metropolitan Borough Council Election Results 1973-2012" (PDF). Elections Centre. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
2. Coussins, Jordan (3 May 2019). "Walsall Council local elections 2019: Conservatives take control". BirminghamLive. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
3. "Local elections 2024: YouGov MRP predicts significant Conservative losses to Labour | YouGov". yougov.co.uk. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
4. "Your Councillors by Party". 28 February 2024. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
5. "Senior Walsall councillor suspended amid death club licence probe". 1 April 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
6. "Six Walsall Labour councillors, including group leader, resign over Starmer's Gaza conflict stance". 16 November 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
7. "Six Walsall Labour councillors quit over Keir Starmer's Gaza ceasefire vote". ITV News. 16 November 2023. Retrieved 28 February 2024.
8. Stubbings, David (3 May 2024). "Full Walsall Council election results". Express and Star. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
9. Thomas, Emma (8 May 2024). "Council leader suspended by Tories after disciplinary". BBC News. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
10. Asokan, Shyamantha (4 June 2024). "Council elects new leader after Tory suspension". BBC News. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
11. "Elections 2024 | Walsall Council". Walsall Council. Archived from the original on 3 May 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
12. "Declaration of results of poll - 2024 local Walsall election" (PDF). Archived from the original (pdf) on 3 May 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.