Reform UK's leader on the London Assembly has said the party must use its control of Havering Council to prove to Londoners that it can run a 'solid, competent and stable' administration, even as polling analysis shows the party's vote share in the capital has fallen short of expectations.
Havering as a flagship for Reform UK
Nigel Farage's party secured 39 of the 55 seats in Havering in May's local elections, making it the first Reform UK-run local authority in London. The council is led by Keith Prince, who is also a Reform UK Assembly Member. According to Prince, the council's initial focus has been on stabilising finances and pressing authorities to complete long-overdue works at Gallows Corner.
However, Havering remains a rare success story for the party in London. Analysis from pollsters More in Common indicates that the 13 per cent of votes earned in May's local elections 'was a notable undershoot of expectations'.
Leading by example in a unique political landscape
Alex Wilson, Reform UK's leader on the London Assembly and a polling enthusiast, said the party needed to overcome the city's unique demographic and political blend through 'leading by example' where they hold power. Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) after a More in Common event at Reform UK's annual conference in Birmingham, Wilson said: 'Where we have taken power in Havering, our flagship borough in London, we can show that we can actually run a solid, competent, stable administration, and be a beacon to show not just what Reform can do in London, but also the country.'
He added: 'Lead by example, where we've got power, where we use it, but also just keep working hard. London has a very different demographic and political mix to the rest of the country, and that's just something we have to deal with.'
By-election successes and challenges in the capital
Presenting his analysis at the event, Wilson said the party had been extremely effective in contesting by-elections in recent months, especially in seats held by Labour, while the Tories have also taken a smaller hit. He claimed that in two thirds of council by-elections since 2025, Reform has been either first or second, showing that they were 'a national party on the rise'.
Half of the seats gained have been from Labour, primarily in traditional Northern, Midland and Welsh 'Red Wall' areas. The party is often out of the running in much of the capital. Luke Tryl, Executive Director of More in Common UK, said that Reform's pool of potential voters are 'mainly Conservatives' and that those considering the party wanted to know that they were ready for government.
Wilson insisted: 'London's still a bit more of a challenge, but just because something's a challenge, doesn't mean it's not worth it at all.' He said the party will continue fighting in as many by-elections in London as possible, including the upcoming poll in Holborn and St Pancras, to give Reform voters in the seat the opportunity to vote for someone and 'to show we are a serious national party'.
'Holborn and St Pancras is probably not somewhere we're expecting to win,' he said. 'But we'll put up a candidate and try hard - I will be out there knocking on doors, supporting whoever our candidate is.'
Looking ahead to the 2028 Mayoral Election
Wilson was confident of having more success in the 2028 Mayoral Election, however, due to a high-profile candidate with a relentless focus on crime. The party announced Laila Cunningham as their choice to contest City Hall earlier this year - and she remains the only confirmed candidate for a major political party so far.
Wilson said: 'Having already selected our candidate longer [ago], we've had a head start, with a high profile candidate, Laila, with a background as a criminal prosecutor. Policing, crime and safety is such a big issue, across all voting groups. I think it's a really powerful message.'
His words were echoed by senior Reform figure Richard Tice, the party's deputy leader, who said that they are making 'great progress' in London but admitted it was 'not one of our strongest areas'. Tice told the BBC: 'The challenge for us is that London has got a significant, what I would call, Islington-style middle-class socialism. And that's not our politics, that's just the nature of it. We can't, in a sense, we're not going to please everybody. But in the outer parts of London, you look at the Haverings of this world, we did very well in South East London, and, sure, everybody's scrapping around for every vote - that's the nature of it.'
