Labour has retained control of Merton Council for another four years, dealing a major blow to Liberal Democrat hopes of taking the borough. The results of Thursday's election came in the early hours of Friday morning (May 8), with the party securing a clear majority of seats on the council.
Labour strengthened its hold on the council after returning 32 councillors across the authority's 57 seats — a modest gain of one seat compared with the party's 2022 result. The win means Labour will continue its long spell of dominance at the council, which began when it took majority control in 2014.
The Lib Dems, who hoped to unseat Labour and strengthen their South West London stronghold, secured 19 seats — still an improvement on their 2022 result. The Conservatives retained their stronghold in Wimbledon Village, but suffered significant losses elsewhere, losing three councillors on the night. These losses included local Conservative leader Nick McLean, who was defeated by the Liberal Democrats in Cannon Hill ward.
Merton Park, which includes Morden, re-elected its two independent councillors, Stephen Mercer and Edward Foley, who together secured 59 per cent of the vote in the ward. Elsewhere, the Greens and Reform failed to elect a single candidate.
Reactions to the Result
Reflecting on the result, former leader of Labour-run Merton Council Stephen Alambritis told the LDRS: 'It means good continuity and a continuation of the good things we are doing.' Addressing pre-election talk of a potential Lib Dem win, he said: 'I thought the Lib Dems were dewy-eyed about the prospect of Ed Davey turning up to claim his fourth south London borough. This is about local issues, this is all about the street on your road. I think if you make that differentiation, people will think and not want to gamble it all away.'
Councillor Anthony Fairclough, leader of the Merton Liberal Democrats, said: 'These results show that more and more residents across the borough are putting their trust in the Liberal Democrats to stand up for them and focus on the issues that matter most locally. Liberal Democrat gains from both Labour and the Conservatives prove there is a growing appetite for change, and that residents are putting their trust in Lib Dem councillors to stand up for their communities. While Labour council bosses have narrowly held on, it's clear there are serious concerns about how the council is being run. With more councillors and a stronger opposition, we will continue to challenge where things aren't good enough and push for better services, better value for money and a more responsive council. We are proud to represent residents across Merton and will keep working hard to ensure residents' voices are heard.'
Voter Turnout and Candidate Numbers
Voter turnout in Merton was 45.15 per cent, up from 40 per cent in 2022. Yesterday's election saw a record number of 271 candidates standing for election across all 20 wards.
