2025 West Northamptonshire Council election

2025 West Northamptonshire Council election
1 May 2025 (2025-05-01)

All 76 seats on West Northamptonshire Council
39 seats needed for a majority
Turnout35% (5 pp)
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Mark Arnull Adam Brown (defeated) Wendy Randall (defeated)
Party Reform Conservative Labour
Leader since 14 May 2025 16 May 2024 3 May 2022
Leader's seat Kingsthorpe North Bugbrooke
Ran in Campion
Daventry West
Ran in Daventry South
Last election 0 seats, 0.18% 66 seats, 50.60% 20 seats, 24.45%
Seats won 42 17 9
Seat change 42 35 9
Popular vote 71,958 56,655 42,611
Percentage 33.0% 26.0% 19.5%
Swing 32.82 pp 24.6 pp 4.95 pp

  Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party
 
Ind
Leader Sally Beardsworth (defeated) N/A Emmie Willliamson (lost)
Party Liberal Democrats Independent Green
Leader's seat Kingsthorpe South
Ran in Kingsthorpe North
N/A Ran in Towcester
Last election 5 seats, 16.28% 2 seats, 2.89% 0 seats, 4.63%
Seats won 6 2 0
Seat change 2
Popular vote 25,348 7,224 13,727
Percentage 11.6% 3.3% 6.3%
Swing 4.68 pp 0.41 pp 1.7 pp

Results by ward
  Reform UK
  Conservative Party
  Labour Party
  Liberal Democrats
  Independent

Composition of the Council after the election
  Reform UK
  Conservative Party
  Labour Party
  Liberal Democrats
  Independent

Leader of the Council before election

Adam Brown
Conservative

Elected Leader of the Council

Mark Arnull
Reform

The 2025 West Northamptonshire Council election took place on 1 May 2025 to elect 76 councillors to West Northamptonshire Council (WNC), the unitary authority that runs local government services in West Northamptonshire, England as part of nationwide local elections. This was the second election to the council since its creation in 2021, and the first conducted under its new electoral boundaries.

The election followed a turbulent period for the incumbent Conservative administration, who entered the campaign weakened by a series of high-profile resignations and internal controversies. With all major parties fielding candidates in every ward, the election was one of the most hotly contested in the area's recent history, with 355 candidates contesting 35 wards. The poll took place against a backdrop of wider political changes, including Labour's victory in the 2024 Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner election and gains in parliamentary constituencies in the 2024 UK general election.

The election result saw Reform UK win 42 seats from 0 in 2021, winning a majority and taking control of the council from the Conservative Party, which won 17 – a significant reduction from the 63 won in 2021. The Labour Party won 9 seats, a decrease from the 20 won in 2021 and falling to the third-largest group, while the Liberal Democrats retained 6 seats and independent candidates won 2 seats.