The 2026 Trafford Council elections were held on Thursday, 7 May 2026 alongside other local elections in the United Kingdom. 21 of the 63 seats were contested, with each successful candidate elected to serve a four-year term of office expiring in 2030.
The Green Party won the most votes, with Labour and the Conservatives very closely behind (all around 23%). Labour retained overall control of the council, but with a reduced majority.
Council composition After 2024 election Before 2026 election Party Seats Party Seats 43 41 8 10 6 7 6 5 Changes 2024–2026: July 2025: Ulrich Savary (Labour) leaves party to sit as an independent August 2025: Denise Western (Labour) dies – by-election held October 2025 September 2025: Ulrich Savary (Independent) joins Liberal Democrats October 2025: Kaushik Chakraborty (Conservative) gains by-election from Labour Owain Sutton (Green) resigns – by-election held November 2025 November 2025: Natalie Shalom (Conservative) gains by-election from Greens
Background The Local Government Act 1972 created a two-tier system of metropolitan counties and districts covering Greater Manchester, Merseyside, South Yorkshire, Tyne and Wear, the West Midlands, and West Yorkshire starting in 1974. Trafford was a district of the Greater Manchester metropolitan county. The Local Government Act 1985 abolished the metropolitan counties, with metropolitan districts taking on most of their powers as metropolitan boroughs. The Greater Manchester Combined Authority was created in 2011 and began electing the mayor of Greater Manchester from 2017, which was given strategic powers covering a region coterminous with the former Greater Manchester metropolitan county.
In June 2022, the Local Government Boundary Commission for England made The Trafford (Electoral Changes) Order 2022, which officially abolished all 21 existing wards and established 21 new wards with new boundaries. All 63 Council seats were contested at the 2023 elections. The elected councillor who received the second-highest number of votes in each ward at the 2023 election had their seat contested in this election.
Electoral process
The council elects its councillors in thirds, with a third being up for election every year for three years, with no election in the fourth year. The election will take place by first-past-the-post voting, with wards being represented by three councillors, with one elected in each election year to serve a four-year term.
All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) living in Trafford aged 18 or over were entitled to vote in the election. People who lived at two addresses in different local authorities, such as university students with different term-time and holiday addresses, were entitled to be registered for elections in both local authorities. Voting in-person at polling stations will take place from 07:00 to 22:00 on election day, with voters able to apply for postal votes or proxy votes in advance of the election.
Election result
PartyVotesSeatsFull CouncilGreen Party 20,167 (23.4%) 5.6 4 (19.0%) 2 7 (11.1%)Labour Party 20,070 (23.3%) 18.6 8 (38.1%) 6 35 (55.6%)Conservative Party 19,954 (23.2%) 2.0 5 (23.8%) 2 12 (19.0%)Reform UK 16,355 (19.0%) 16.7 2 (9.5%) 2 2 (3.2%)Liberal Democrats 9,083 (10.6%) 0.82 (9.5%) 7 (11.1%)Advance UK 205 (0.2%) N/A0 (0.0%) N.A 0 (0.0%)SDP 145 (0.2%) N/A0 (0.0%) N/A 0 (0.0%)Independent 109 (0.1%) 1.10 (0.0%) 0 (0.0%)
+ ↓ 7 35 7 12 2
Incumbents
Ward Incumbent councillorParty Re-standing Altrincham Daniel Jerrome Green Yes Ashton upon Mersey Ben Hartley Labour Yes Bowdon Shengke Zhi Conservative Yes Broadheath Amy Whyte Labour No Brooklands Rose Thompson Labour Yes Bucklow-St Martin's Aidan Williams Labour Yes Davyhulme Karina Carter Labour Yes Flixton Dolores O'Sullivan Labour Yes Gorse Hill & Cornbrook Fianna Hornby Labour Yes Hale Hannah Spencer Green No Hale Barns & Timperley South Nathan Evans Conservative Yes Longford Judith Lloyd Labour Yes Lostock & Barton Mike Cordingley Labour No Manor John Holden Conservative No Old Trafford Emma Hirst Labour No Sale Central Eve Parker Labour Yes Sale Moor Liz Patel Labour Yes Stretford & Humphrey Park Jane Slater Labour Yes Timperley Central Julian Newgrosh Liberal Democrats Yes Timperley North Will Frass Liberal Democrats Yes Urmston Catherine Hynes Labour No
Ward results
Altrincham
Ashton upon Mersey
Bowdon
Broadheath
Brooklands
Bucklow-St. Martin's
Davyhulme
Flixton
Gorse Hill & Cornbrook
Hale
Hale Barns & Timperley South
Longford
Lostock & Barton
Manor
Old Trafford
Sale Central
Sale Moor
Stretford & Humphrey Park
Timperley Central
Timperley North
Urmston
References