The 2026 Hackney London Borough Council election took place on 7 May 2026, as part of the 2026 United Kingdom local elections. All 57 members of Hackney London Borough Council were elected, with 2026 Hackney mayoral election happening at the same time to determine the council's leader. The election took place alongside the local elections in the other London boroughs.

Prior to the election, the council was under Labour majority control. The election saw Labour lose most of its seats. The Green Party won a majority on the council for the first time, taking 42 of the 57 seats. As well as the Greens winning a majority of the seats, their candidate Zoë Garbett also won the associated mayoral election.

Background

History

The thirty-two London boroughs were established in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. They are the principal authorities in Greater London and have responsibilities including education, housing, planning, highways, social services, libraries, recreation, waste, environmental health and revenue collection. Some of the powers are shared with the Greater London Authority, which also manages passenger transport, police and fire.

Since its formation, Hackney has usually been under Labour control except for a period from 1968 to 1971 when it was under Conservative control and from 1998 to 2002 when it was under no overall control. Councillors have mostly been elected from the Labour Party, Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats, and Green Party councillors, but the Liberal Democrats have not had any councillors since 2018. The council is run under a mayoral system, so its leader is the directly elected mayor of Hackney.

Preceding council term At the 2022 elections, Labour's Philip Glanville had won the mayoralty and the party had also won 50 of the 57 seats on the council. Glanville subsequently resigned as mayor in September 2023 after a photo emerged of him at a social event with an ex-councillor who had been convicted of possessing images of sexual abuse of young children. A by-election for the mayoralty was held in November 2023, which was won by Labour's Caroline Woodley. Ian Sharer gained Woodley's council seat for the Conservatives at the subsequent by-election.

In May 2024, three Labour councillors left the party to form the Hackney Independent Socialist Group, or Hackney Independent Socialist Collective. Liam Davis (Green) gained Stoke Newington from Labour in a September 2024 by-election. M Can Ozsen became an independent in January 2026.

Electoral process Hackney, as is the case all other London borough councils, elects all of its councillors at once every four years, with the previous election having taken place in 2022. The election takes place by multi-member first-past-the-post voting, with each ward being represented by two or three councillors. Electors will have as many votes as there are councillors to be elected in their ward, with the top two or three being elected.

Hackney is one of five London councils led by a directly elected mayor; all voters across the borough vote to elect a mayor by first past the post system in addition to voting for their local councillor.

All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) living in London aged 18 or over are entitled to vote in the election. People who live at two addresses in different councils, such as university students with different term-time and holiday addresses, are entitled to be registered for and vote in elections in both local authorities. Voting in-person at polling stations takes place from 07:00 to 22:00 on election day, and voters are able to apply for postal votes or proxy votes in advance of the election. Hackney is reportedly a top target for the Green Party of England and Wales.

Previous council composition

After 2022 election Before 2026 election After 2026 election Party Seats Party Seats Party Seats 50 43 42 5 6 9 2 4 6 colspan="3" 3 colspan="3" 1

Results summary

Ward results Brownswood

Cazenove

Clissold

Dalston

De Beauvoir

Hackney Central

Hackney Downs

Hackney Wick

Haggerston

Homerton

Hoxton East and Shoreditch

Hoxton West

King's Park

Lea Bridge

London Fields

Shacklewell

Springfield

Stamford Hill West

Stoke Newington

Victoria

Woodberry Down

By-elections

Dalston Following her election as Mayor of Hackney in the 2026 mayoral election, Zoë Garbett did not take up her seat as councillor for Dalston ward. Under section 71 of the Local Government Act 2000, a person may not simultaneously hold the offices of elected mayor and councillor within the same local authority, resulting in a vacancy in the ward and the triggering of a by-election.

Hackney Central James Tilden, elected as a Green councillor for Hackney Central in 2026, did not take up his seat after it emerged that he was employed as a teacher at a Hackney community school, making him legally an employee of Hackney Council and therefore disqualified from serving as a councillor for the same authority under section 80(1)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

Notes

References