The 1986 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 8 May 1986. There was a 3% reduction in the number of councillors, owing to the abolition of the Greater London Council and the Metropolitan County Councils.
The national projected share of the vote was Labour 37%, Conservative 34%, Liberal-SDP Alliance 26%. The Conservatives lost 975 seats, Labour gained 13 seats and the Liberal-SDP Alliance gained 338 seats.
Two parliamentary by-elections were also held on the same day in the West Derbyshire and Ryedale constituencies. The Conservatives held West Derbyshire, though only by 100 votes. The Alliance gained Ryedale from the Conservatives.
The elections were delayed a week from the usual date of the first Thursday in May, due to 1 May 1986 falling within Passover.
Results
England
London boroughs
In all 32 London boroughs the whole council was up for election.
Council Previous control Result DetailsBarking and Dagenham holdDetailsBarnet holdDetailsBexley holdDetailsBrent holdDetailsBromley holdDetailsCamden holdDetailsCroydon holdDetailsEaling gainDetailsEnfield holdDetailsGreenwich holdDetailsHackney holdDetailsHammersmith and Fulham gainDetailsHaringey holdDetailsHarrow holdDetailsHavering gainDetailsHillingdon gainDetailsHounslow holdDetailsIslington holdDetailsKensington and Chelsea holdDetailsKingston upon Thames gainDetailsLambeth gainDetailsLewisham holdDetailsMerton holdDetailsNewham holdDetailsRedbridge holdDetailsRichmond upon Thames gainDetailsSouthwark holdDetailsSutton gainDetailsTower Hamlets gainDetailsWaltham Forest gainDetailsWandsworth holdDetailsWestminster holdDetails
Metropolitan boroughs All 36 metropolitan borough councils had one third of their seats up for election.
Council Previous control Result DetailsBarnsley holdDetailsBirmingham holdDetailsBolton holdDetailsBradford gainDetailsBury gainDetailsCalderdale holdDetailsCoventry holdDetailsDoncaster holdDetailsDudley gainDetailsGateshead holdDetailsKirklees gainDetailsKnowsley holdDetailsLeeds holdDetailsLiverpool holdDetailsManchester holdDetailsNewcastle upon Tyne holdDetailsNorth Tyneside gainDetailsOldham holdDetailsRochdale gainDetailsRotherham holdDetailsSalford holdDetailsSandwell holdDetailsSefton gainDetailsSheffield holdDetailsSolihull holdDetailsSouth Tyneside holdDetailsSt Helens holdDetailsStockport holdDetailsSunderland holdDetailsTameside holdDetailsTrafford gainDetailsWakefield holdDetailsWalsall holdDetailsWigan holdDetailsWirral gainDetailsWolverhampton holdDetails
District councils
Whole council In 2 districts the whole council was up for election.
In 2 districts there were new ward boundaries, following further electoral boundary reviews by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.
Council Previous control Result DetailsHalton ‡ holdDetailsThamesdown ‡ holdDetails
‡ New ward boundaries
Third of council In 121 districts one third of the council was up for election.
Council Previous control Result DetailsAdur gainDetailsAmber Valley holdDetailsBarrow-in-Furness holdDetailsBasildon holdDetailsBasingstoke and Deane gainDetailsBassetlaw holdDetailsBath holdDetailsBlackburn gainDetailsBrentwood holdDetailsBrighton holdDetailsBristol gainDetailsBroadland holdDetailsBroxbourne holdDetailsBurnley holdDetailsCambridge gainDetailsCannock Chase holdDetailsCarlisle holdDetailsCheltenham holdDetailsCherwell holdDetailsChester gainDetailsChorley holdDetailsColchester gainDetailsCongleton gainDetailsCraven gainDetailsCrawley holdDetailsCrewe and Nantwich holdDetailsDaventry holdDetailsDerby holdDetailsEast Devon holdDetailsEastbourne gainDetailsEastleigh holdDetailsEllesmere Port and Neston holdDetailsElmbridge gainDetailsEpping Forest holdDetailsExeter holdDetailsFareham gainDetailsGillingham holdDetailsGloucester holdDetailsGosport holdDetailsGreat Grimsby gainDetailsGreat Yarmouth gainDetailsHarlow holdDetailsHarrogate holdDetailsHart holdDetailsHartlepool holdDetailsHastings holdDetailsHavant holdDetailsHereford holdDetailsHertsmere holdDetailsHinckley and Bosworth holdDetailsHuntingdonshire holdDetailsHyndburn gainDetailsIpswich holdDetailsKingston upon Hull holdDetailsLeicester holdDetailsLeominster holdDetailsLincoln holdDetailsMacclesfield holdDetailsMaidstone holdDetailsMid Sussex holdDetailsMilton Keynes holdDetailsMole Valley holdDetailsNewcastle-under-Lyme holdDetailsNorth Bedfordshire gainDetailsNorth Hertfordshire holdDetailsNorwich holdDetailsNuneaton and Bedworth holdDetailsOadby and Wigston holdDetailsOxford holdDetailsPendle holdDetailsPenwith gainDetailsPeterborough holdDetailsPortsmouth holdDetailsPreston holdDetailsPurbeck gainDetailsReading gainDetailsRedditch holdDetailsReigate and Banstead holdDetailsRochford holdDetailsRossendale gainDetailsRugby holdDetailsRunnymede holdDetailsRushmoor holdDetailsScunthorpe holdDetailsShrewsbury and Atcham holdDetailsSlough holdDetailsSouth Bedfordshire holdDetailsSouth Cambridgeshire holdDetailsSouth Herefordshire holdDetailsSouth Lakeland holdDetailsSouthampton holdDetailsSouthend-on-Sea holdDetailsSt Albans holdDetailsStevenage holdDetailsStoke-on-Trent holdDetailsStratford-on-Avon holdDetailsStroud holdDetailsSwale gainDetailsTamworth gainDetailsTandridge holdDetailsThree Rivers gainDetailsThurrock holdDetailsTonbridge and Malling holdDetailsTorbay holdDetailsTunbridge Wells holdDetailsWatford holdDetailsWaveney gainDetailsWelwyn Hatfield holdDetailsWest Dorset holdDetailsWest Lancashire gainDetailsWest Lindsey holdDetailsWest Oxfordshire holdDetailsWeymouth and Portland holdDetailsWinchester holdDetailsWoking gainDetailsWokingham holdDetailsWoodspring holdDetailsWorcester gainDetailsWorthing holdDetailsWyre Forest holdDetailsYork gainDetails
Local education authority This was the first and only election to the directly elected local education authority established by the Local Government Act 1985. However, it was short-lived, being abolished four years later by the Education Reform Act 1988.
Council Previous control Result DetailsInner London Education Authority New Council Details
Scotland
Regional councils
Council Previous control Result DetailsBorders holdDetailsCentral holdDetailsDumfries and Galloway holdDetailsFife holdDetailsGrampian gainDetailsHighland holdDetailsLothian gainDetailsOrkney holdDetailsShetland holdDetailsStrathclyde holdDetailsTayside gainDetailsWestern Isles holdDetails
References
Local elections 2006. House of Commons Library Research Paper 06/26. Vote 1999 BBC News Vote 2000 BBC News