Reform UK leader Nigel Farage wants to embark on a transformation of Britain (Image: Getty)

Reform UK has won a council by-election in the latest boost for Nigel Farage‘s party. The insurgent party gained Sleaford Westholme on North Kesteven District Council in Lincolnshire, which was previously held by an independent.

Reform secured 45% of the vote in the ballot, with the Lincolnshire Independents second with 15%, and the Tories third with 15%. Elsewhere in council by-elections on Thursday, the Greens took Aigburth in Liverpool from the Liberal Democrats. Zack Polanski’s party won 45% of the vote, with the Lib Dems on 36% and Labour on 10%.

Meanwhile, the Lib Dems held two seats and gained two more in other council by-elections.

It comes ahead of May’s local elections, where Reform and the Greens are hoping to make major gains.

Mr Farage, whose party is leading national opinion polls, has vowed to begin transforming Britain by winning the forthcoming ballots.

Speaking at a local election rally in Swindon on Thursday night, the Reform UK leader said Britain was a great country but had been broken by successive Conservative and Labour governments.

“We have been a very great country, we still are a very great people, but we’ve lost the sense of belief in ourselves,” he told the audience of party members and supporters.

“We’ve lost the sense of direction as a country in terms of where we need to go.

“We have been badly led by weak leaders who don’t believe in Britain, who don’t believe in the British people, who are gutless and filled with cowardice.”

Polling expert Lord Hayward said earlier this week that the local elections will be “truly national”.

There is intense speculation that embattled Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer could be forced out of No 10 as Labour is expected to face a bloodbath.

Reform UK Wins Council By-Election in Latest Boost for Nigel Farage

Reform UK has received another boost in local politics after securing a council by-election victory, giving Nigel Farage fresh grounds to argue that his party is reshaping Britain’s political landscape. The result comes amid continuing pressure on Labour and the Conservatives, as voters weigh up the parties’ records on immigration, the cost of living, public services and trust in government.

For Farage, local elections are about more than individual council seats. They provide an opportunity to demonstrate that Reform UK can convert national attention into support in communities that have traditionally backed the established parties. Every successful by-election gives the party another platform from which to promote its policies and challenge its rivals.

However, the wider picture is more complicated than any single result. Reform has recorded notable local victories during 2026, but it has also faced defeats in individual contests. The latest developments illustrate both the party’s ability to attract support and the challenge of sustaining that support across different parts of the country.

A Victory With Wider Political Significance

Reform UK has spent much of the year seeking to establish itself as a serious force in local government, rather than simply a party that attracts attention during national political controversies.

One notable victory came in East Markham, within Robert Jenrick’s Newark constituency. On 16 September, Reform candidate Matthew Evans won a seat on Bassetlaw District Council with 436 votes, ahead of the Conservatives on 250, Labour on 151 and the Greens on 42. Reform had not won the ward at the previous contest, when the Conservatives secured a substantial majority. The result represented a significant change in local voting patterns. <Cite refs={[“turn832255news6”]} />

The result was welcomed by Farage, who used it to criticise the Conservatives and argue that voters who once supported the party were increasingly willing to choose Reform instead.

Such victories matter because council by-elections often provide a direct test of local political sentiment between general elections. They allow parties to see whether their messages are resonating beyond national headlines and whether dissatisfied voters are prepared to support them at the ballot box.

Nevertheless, one ward cannot represent the views of the entire country. By-election results can be affected by turnout, the popularity of individual candidates, local issues and the strength of competing campaigns. Their significance becomes clearer when considered alongside results from other areas and broader polling data.

Why Reform Is Targeting Local Government

Local councils make decisions that affect everyday life, including waste collection, planning, housing, local roads and some community services. Control of a council can also give a party a visible platform to demonstrate its priorities and develop a record in public administration.

Reform’s local election performance in May 2026 was substantial. Election-results data recorded the party winning 1,454 council seats across the elections covered by its dataset, a net increase of 1,239 seats compared with the previous contests included in that analysis. Reform also became the largest party on a number of councils. <Cite refs={[“turn832255search15”]} />

Those gains gave the party a much larger role in local government and created opportunities to challenge Labour and Conservative administrations in areas where those parties had previously enjoyed stronger positions.

For Reform, the next task is to show that electoral gains can translate into effective administration. Winning seats allows councillors to influence decisions, but governing councils involves difficult choices about budgets, staffing, statutory responsibilities and competing demands from residents.

Voters may welcome promises to reduce waste or change local priorities, but they will also expect councillors to explain how their proposals would be funded and delivered. The party’s performance will therefore be judged not only by the number of seats it wins, but also by the results it achieves once in office.

Labour and the Conservatives Face a Challenge

Reform’s progress has placed pressure on both major established parties, although the scale and nature of that pressure vary from one area to another.

Some former Conservative voters have turned to Reform because they want a tougher approach to immigration, lower public spending or a more direct challenge to the political establishment. Others may feel that the Conservatives failed to deliver on earlier promises while in government.

Labour faces a different but overlapping challenge. In some communities, voters have expressed frustration about living costs, public services and the pace of change. Reform has sought to turn that dissatisfaction into support by arguing that the main parties have not adequately addressed the public’s concerns.

Yet the established parties retain important advantages, including experienced local organisations, longstanding councillor networks and records of delivering services. Their ability to respond to voters’ concerns can influence whether Reform’s gains endure.

The recent results also demonstrate that support is not moving in only one direction. On 8 October, Labour won a council by-election in the Town ward of Newcastle-under-Lyme, taking a seat previously held by Reform UK. Labour’s Andrew Fox-Hewitt received 431 votes, compared with 249 for Reform’s candidate. <Cite refs={[“turn832255search13”]} />

That result is a reminder that local political momentum can shift from contest to contest. Reform’s overall presence on a council may remain substantial even when it loses an individual seat, just as a single victory for Labour or the Conservatives does not automatically indicate a nationwide recovery.