Local Elections 2018: Kick out the Tories

It’s polling day. 4,350 seats are up in 150 councils. A quick snapshot:

In London, Barnet must turn red. A very good night would see Wandsworth come under no overall control and Labour make historic gains in inner-city Westminster and Zone 6’s Hillingdon.

Leave-voting Dudley, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Calderdale and Plymouth will be difficult but gains there would show Labour’s appeal stretches beyond metropolitan areas. Swindon will be even tougher to crack as it trials compulsory voter ID.

Remain-voting Trafford is where Jeremy Corbyn launched the campaign. It’s a Momentum and Labour target, but may be a stretch too far this time.

The Tories are telling us to vote on “bins, not Brexit” because they know how badly their Prime Minister is handling negotiations – and that’s just within her own cabinet. Yesterday the government failed to find a customs union compromise and suffered its tenth defeat in the Lords. They’re failing nationally, and locally too – it’s no coincidence Northamptonshire County Council went bust. Conservative-controlled councils are quietly implementing austerity while Labour’s local authorities continue to prioritise the Living Wage, adopt strict air pollution standards and find creative solutions such as the Preston model. Just look at neighbouring boroughs Barnet and Camden to see a stark contrast in public service provision.

That’s not to say Labour has got this in the bag. As we saw last June, traditional Tory strongholds are now on a knife-edge. Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster and Wandsworth aren’t exactly ‘winnable’ councils for Labour yet (though fingers crossed for significant gains), so every vote counts and your contribution to a get-out-the-vote operation could make a real difference.

Unsure where you’d be most useful? Check out Labour’s handy online tool Your Election Victory. And, as usual, don’t worry if you’ve never been door-knocking before. You might be anxious that voters will ask you complex policy questions, but you can buddy up with an experienced canvasser at first and I promise it’s really just a question of reminding people to vote and directing them towards their nearest polling station.

Tonight I will be running a liveblog from 10pm until… well, as long as I can possibly manage it. Jade Azim will also be on hand today. If you’re going to a count tonight, or you’ve got any tips/canvassing stories/great polling day photos, my Twitter DMs are open or drop me a line via [email protected].

To all the Labour candidates, organisers, election agents, committee room champions, drivers, polling station tellers, tea makers, phonebankers, leafletters and canvassers: thank you and good luck.

Let’s kick out the Tories.

Sienna @siennamarla

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