Liberal Democrats take control of Cambridgeshire County Council
Cambridgeshire County Council is now under control of the Liberal Democrats.The party won 31 of the 61 seats up for election - an exact majority.Reform UK and the Green Party, neither of which had councillors represented on the authority previously, have gained 10 and three seats respectively.No party had overall control of the council prior to Thursday's election.
Votes counted at various locations across Cambridgeshire revealed the Liberal Democrats gained 11 seats since the last election in 2021.The Conservatives lost 18 seats and now have 10, the same number as Reform UK. Labour now holds five seats after losing four, the Green Party gained three and Independent parties won two seats. Lucy Nethsingha, the leader of the Liberal Democrat group on the authority, was re-elected to the county council, this time standing in Cambourne instead of her previous ward, Newnham in Cambridge.She told the Local Democracy Reporting Service she was "relieved and delighted" to be back at the authority. Nethsingha added her party would look to work with others, as it was "really important that parties work together to try and get the best outcomes for Cambridgeshire".Alex Beckett, a re-elected Liberal Democrat councillor, told the BBC it had "been an absolutely fantastic day" for the party. He added it was "great to see" the Liberal Democrats had "taken seats from both sides, we are the real party to beat right now".
One Conservative loss included Steve Count, who had been the leader of the Conservative group at the county council. He was beaten by Reform UK candidates in March, Cambridgeshire.Count congratulated his successors and said he felt like he had "achieved a lot under very difficult circumstances".John Roberts won the Littleport seat for Reform UK, with 675 votes.He said he "wasn't sure" he would win, adding "I have set myself up for very hard work".The county council is responsible for providing several services including highways maintenance, adult and children's social care, education and running libraries.It will agree key political roles, including the leader of the council and all key committee appointments on 20 May.A new Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayor was also elected, Conservative Paul Bristow.
Election analysis: Liberal Democrats will have an unstable majority
The Liberal Democrats were the biggest winners at Cambridgeshire County Council's elections and just secured a majority by taking 31 seats out of a possible 61.It means the party's councillors will be able to form an administration on their own, but their position will be unstable. Just one resignation or defection would mean they would have to work with other parties.Their support is very much focused in the south of the county, where three MPs from the party won in last year's general election.In the north of the county it was a very different story. County council seats were split between the Conservatives and Reform UK. This suggests that support for Reform UK is growing in the Fenland area. The Conservatives will now be seeking out a new leader for their group after Steve Count lost his seat in March North and Waldersley.It appears that the Cambridgeshire electorate are rejecting both Labour and the Conservatives. It could be a sign that people are unhappy with the Labour government, but not ready to give the Conservatives a chance.A question going forward will be over what this will mean for the political make-up of any new unitary authority, set up following a review of local government.It is widely expected that there will be at least two unitary authorities roughly split across the north and south lines of the county.Going by today's results that would mean a very left-of-centre group of politicians running the south of the county, with a right-of-centre group running the north.
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