2024 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council election

The 2024 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council election took place on Thursday 2 May 2024, alongside the other local elections in the United Kingdom being held on the same day, to elect one-third of the 51 members of Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council in Lancashire.

2024 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council election

← 2023 2 May 2024 (2024-05-02) 2026 →

17 out of 51 seats to Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
26 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party Third party
  Blank Blank Blank
Leader Phil Riley John Slater
Party Labour Independent Conservative
Seats before 31 9 11
Seats won 7 8 2
Seats after 29 13 9
Seat change Decrease 2 Increase 4 Decrease 2
Popular vote 12,749 10,964 7,094
Percentage 40.4% 34.7% 22.5%
Swing Decrease 22.6% Increase 34.2% Decrease 7.8%

Winner of each seat at the 2024 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council election

Leader before election

Phil Riley
Labour

Leader after election

Phil Riley
Labour

Labour retained control of the council.[1] Both Labour and the Conservatives lost seats to independent candidates, many of whom were allied to the '4 BwD' group of independents which had formed on the council in autumn 2023. After the election there were 12 councillors in the 4BwD group, overtaking the Conservatives who were left with 9 seats. The 4 BwD group therefore became the council's official opposition.[2]

Background

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The Labour Party have governed Blackburn with Darwen for most of its history. They controlled the council from its creation in 1997 as a unitary authority to 2007, and again from 2011 to the present, with a period of no overall control between.[3] In the previous election, Labour won 14 seats (up 2) with 63.0% of the vote, the Conservatives won 3 (down 1) with 30.3%, and the Liberal Democrats lost the seat they were defending with 5.1%.

The seats up for election in 2024 were last contested in 2021; because of the delay of all local elections due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the seats are up for election after 3 years rather than the usual 4. In that election, Labour won 11 seats with 55.4%, the Conservatives won 6 with 38.8%, and the Liberal Democrats won 0 with 5.0%.

Previous council composition

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After 2023 election Before 2024 election[4] After 2024 election[5]
Party Seats Party Seats Party Seats
Labour 39 Labour 31 Labour 29
Conservative 12 Conservative 11 Conservative 9
Independent 0 Independent 9 Independent 13

Changes:

  • October 2023: Saj Ali, Mustafa Desai, Samim Desai, Suleman Khonat, Adbul Patel, Salma Patel, and Salim Sidat leave Labour to sit as independents;[a][6] Mohammed Irfan suspended from Labour;[7] Altaf "Tiger" Patel leaves Conservatives to sit as an independent[8]

Results

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2024 Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council election
Party This election Full council This election
Seats Net Seats % Other Total Total % Votes Votes % +/−
  Labour 7  2 41.2 22 29 56.9 12749 40.4 -22.6
  Independent 8  4 47.1 5 13 25.5 10964 34.7 +34.2
  Conservative 2  2 11.8 7 9 17.6 7094 22.5 -7.8
  Green 0   0.0 0 0 0 762 2.4 +1.5

Ward Results

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Audley & Queen's Park

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Audley & Queen's Park
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Amin Kapadia 1,068 49.2 N/A
Labour Faryad Hussain 664 30.6 –36.5
Green Aadil Chopdat 311 14.3 N/A
Conservative Lyall Ainscow 129 5.9 −12.5
Turnout 2,172 34.2 +5.8
Independent hold

Bastwell & Daisyfield

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Bastwell & Daisyfield
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Rana Khan 1,273 52.6 N/A
Labour Iftakhar Hussain* 936 38.7 –41.7
Conservative Ella Hardman 139 5.7 −13.9
Independent Khurram Shahzad 71 2.9 N/A
Turnout 2,419 41.3 +6.1
Independent gain from Labour

Billinge & Beardwood

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Billinge & Beardwood
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Waqar Hussain 1,512 62.7 N/A
Labour Aadil Patel 509 21.1 –40.9
Conservative Reece Macaulay 389 16.1 −16.6
Turnout 2,410 38.3 +4.1
Independent hold

Blackburn Central

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Blackburn Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Tahir Mahmood 799 51.2 N/A
Labour Liyakatali Patel 596 38.2 –38.2
Conservative Keith Murray 166 10.6 −5.5
Turnout 1,561 25.0
Independent hold

Blackburn South & Lower Darwen

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Blackburn South & Lower Darwen
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Liz Johnson 809 53.8 +9.8
Conservative Denise Gee* 696 46.2 −9.8
Turnout 1,505 26.7 +0.4
Labour gain from Conservative Swing  9.8

Blackburn South East

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Blackburn South East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tony Humphrys* 628 58.3 −15.1
Independent Riff Haworth 259 24.0 N/A
Conservative Henry Arnold 191 17.7 −8.9
Turnout 1,078 17.8 +1.1
Labour hold

Darwen East

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Darwen East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Katrina Fielding* 773 58.6 −0.5
Independent Paul Browne 331 25.1 N/A
Conservative Ryan Slater 214 16.2 +0.4
Turnout 1,318 20.7 –1.2
Labour hold

Darwen South

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Darwen South
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Matt Jackson* 903 49.0 +3.7
Conservative Steve Duncan 734 39.8 −1.0
Green Denise Morgan 206 11.2 N/A
Turnout 1,843 28.5 –0.3
Labour hold Swing  2.4

Darwen West

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Darwen West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Brian Taylor* 1,293 73.7 +10.9
Conservative Lilian Salton 460 26.2 −5.1
Turnout 1,753 28.7 –2.1
Labour hold Swing  8.0

Ewood

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Ewood
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Ashley Whalley 657 52.8 −5.4
Conservative Rick Moore 397 31.9 −9.9
Green John Milburn 128 10.3 N/A
Independent Saraj Mohammed 63 5.1 N/A
Turnout 1,245 20.3 –0.5
Labour gain from Conservative Swing  2.3

Little Harwood & Whitebirk

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Little Harwood & Whitebirk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Tiger Patel* 809 36.5 N/A
Independent Ismail Esat 755 34.1 N/A
Labour Naushad Surve 480 21.7 –58.6
Conservative Les Cade 170 7.7 −5.6
Turnout 2,214 36.7 +11.4
Independent hold

Livesey with Pleasington

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Livesey with Pleasington
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Mark Russell* 1,441 74.7 +7.2
Labour Isma Sajid 487 25.3 −7.2
Turnout 1,928 29.6 –1.9
Conservative hold Swing  7.2

Mill Hill & Moorgate

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Mill Hill & Moorgate
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Julie Gunn* 697 64.0 −4.1
Conservative John Murphy 272 25.0 +2.0
Independent Natasha Shah 120 11.0 N/A
Turnout 1,089 19.8 –0.4
Labour hold Swing  3.1

Roe Lee

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Roe Lee
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Imran Ahmed 999 46.9 N/A
Labour Sylvia Liddle* 723 34.0 –33.4
Conservative Helen Voegt 406 19.1 −4.7
Turnout 2,128 33.1 +5.3
Independent gain from Labour

Shear Brow & Corporation Park

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Shear Brow & Corporation Park
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Muntazir Patel 1,957 70.9 N/A
Labour Hussain Akhtar* 740 26.8 –63.7
Conservative Judith Pearson 65 2.4 −7.1
Turnout 2,762 45.0 +17.1
Independent gain from Labour

Wensley Fold

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Wensley Fold
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Iqbal Masters 948 46.7 N/A
Labour Dave Harling* 881 43.4 −46.7
Green Robin Field 117 5.8 N/A
Conservative Mags Marrow 86 4.2 −5.7
Turnout 2,032 33.8 +3.6
Independent gain from Labour

West Pennine

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West Pennine
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Neil Slater 1,139 53.9 +2.0
Labour Simon Charlesworth 973 46.1 +13.4
Turnout 2,112 35.1 –2.3
Conservative hold Swing  5.7

References

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  1. ^ Sit as part of the 4 BwD group on the council, which is not registered as a political party.
  1. ^ "Blackburn with Darwen election result".
  2. ^ Jacobs, Bill (3 May 2024). "Blackburn with Darwen: Gaza Independents surge rocks Labour". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 23 June 2024.
  3. ^ "Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council Election Results 1997-2012" (PDF). Elections Centre. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  4. ^ "Your Councillors". Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  5. ^ Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council (3 May 2024). "Borough election results Thursday 2 May". Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  6. ^ Khan, Shuiab (30 October 2023). "Salim Sidat and ex-Mayor latest to resign over Gaza". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  7. ^ Khan, Shuiab (14 October 2023). "Labour councillor suspended over anti-Israel social media post". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  8. ^ Khan, Shuiab (15 October 2023). "Blackburn's Boris Johnson resigns from Tory party at pro-Palestine rally". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 2 April 2024.