The local elections weren’t only a verdict—they were a reboot. Reform now governs in many councils. The Tories are out. Labour looks rattled. A new era has begun.
May 1 wasn’t just an election—it was the start of a new season in Britain’s long-running political soap opera.
The Tories, once the dominant force of English local government, have been wiped off the map.
Labour, in government nationally, is suddenly looking over its shoulder—not at the Conservatives, but at Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which just graduated from fringe protest party to ruling authority in eight councils and two mayoralties.
Help fund great articles! We’re aiming for £50 to cover research and reporting time this week.
Can you chip in £3 today?
👉 https://ko-fi.com/voxpolitical
If British politics is a soap opera—and let’s face it, it often is—then this is the moment the writers changed the cast.
The old leads are still around, but they’ve lost their grip on the plot.
New characters are stepping forward, with uncertain motives and untested plans.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Reform’s rise is not just electoral success; it’s an unplanned experiment in governance.
The party’s councillors, many of them new to elected office, will now have to prove they can deliver services, manage budgets, and navigate bureaucracy—without the benefit of scapegoats or slogans.
Their success or failure will shape whether Reform is still around in 2029—or remembered as a brief detour into populism.
Get my free guide: “10 Political Lies You Were Sold This Decade” — just subscribe to our email list here:
👉 https://voxpoliticalonline.com
The Conservatives are in retreat, and the question now isn’t just how they recover, but whether they can.
Their coalition of rural England, older voters, and small-c conservatives is fracturing, and Kemi Badenoch’s party is more demoralised than ever.
Boris Johnson is the ghost in the room—everyone knows his role in causing this, but no one wants to say his name.
Labour, for its part, is finding that winning a general election doesn’t guarantee safety.
Its PIP proposals have sparked rebellion on the doorstep.
Its vote share is sagging.
Reform is eating into its base in places like Runcorn.
And Keir Starmer’s mantra of “further and faster” is starting to sound like an admission that voters don’t yet feel the change they were promised.
Meanwhile, the Lib Dems are quietly rebuilding a role as the alternative to everyone else—especially in the suburban south.
They’re the only party that walked away from this week with both momentum and credibility – and that is a stunning comeback for the party
Help fund great articles! We’re aiming for £50 to cover research and reporting time this week.
Can you chip in £3 today?
👉 https://ko-fi.com/voxpolitical
This is no longer a two-party system.
It’s not even clear whether it’s a three-party system.
It’s a battle of fragments, ideologies, and identities.
Protest votes are becoming power.
Old loyalties are evaporating.
And the next few years will test every party’s ability not just to win—but to hold.
Welcome to the new season. The set has changed. So has the cast. And if you’re expecting the old storylines to continue, you’re watching the wrong show.
Vox Political needs your help!
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Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
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Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
It’s the new season of UK politics! Will you be watching?
The local elections weren’t only a verdict—they were a reboot. Reform now governs in many councils. The Tories are out. Labour looks rattled. A new era has begun.
May 1 wasn’t just an election—it was the start of a new season in Britain’s long-running political soap opera.
The Tories, once the dominant force of English local government, have been wiped off the map.
Labour, in government nationally, is suddenly looking over its shoulder—not at the Conservatives, but at Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, which just graduated from fringe protest party to ruling authority in eight councils and two mayoralties.
Help fund great articles! We’re aiming for £50 to cover research and reporting time this week.
Can you chip in £3 today?
👉 https://ko-fi.com/voxpolitical
If British politics is a soap opera—and let’s face it, it often is—then this is the moment the writers changed the cast.
The old leads are still around, but they’ve lost their grip on the plot.
New characters are stepping forward, with uncertain motives and untested plans.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
Reform’s rise is not just electoral success; it’s an unplanned experiment in governance.
The party’s councillors, many of them new to elected office, will now have to prove they can deliver services, manage budgets, and navigate bureaucracy—without the benefit of scapegoats or slogans.
Their success or failure will shape whether Reform is still around in 2029—or remembered as a brief detour into populism.
Get my free guide: “10 Political Lies You Were Sold This Decade” — just subscribe to our email list here:
👉 https://voxpoliticalonline.com
The Conservatives are in retreat, and the question now isn’t just how they recover, but whether they can.
Their coalition of rural England, older voters, and small-c conservatives is fracturing, and Kemi Badenoch’s party is more demoralised than ever.
Boris Johnson is the ghost in the room—everyone knows his role in causing this, but no one wants to say his name.
Labour, for its part, is finding that winning a general election doesn’t guarantee safety.
Its PIP proposals have sparked rebellion on the doorstep.
Its vote share is sagging.
Reform is eating into its base in places like Runcorn.
And Keir Starmer’s mantra of “further and faster” is starting to sound like an admission that voters don’t yet feel the change they were promised.
Meanwhile, the Lib Dems are quietly rebuilding a role as the alternative to everyone else—especially in the suburban south.
They’re the only party that walked away from this week with both momentum and credibility – and that is a stunning comeback for the party
Help fund great articles! We’re aiming for £50 to cover research and reporting time this week.
Can you chip in £3 today?
👉 https://ko-fi.com/voxpolitical
This is no longer a two-party system.
It’s not even clear whether it’s a three-party system.
It’s a battle of fragments, ideologies, and identities.
Protest votes are becoming power.
Old loyalties are evaporating.
And the next few years will test every party’s ability not just to win—but to hold.
Welcome to the new season. The set has changed. So has the cast. And if you’re expecting the old storylines to continue, you’re watching the wrong show.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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