Number crunching: the Sutton Council election count at the Westcroft Leisure Centre provided some unhappy figures for the Conservatives
INSIDE SUTTON: Labour now have more council seats in Sutton than the Conservatives, after a local election wipeout
It was carnage for the Conservatives in Sutton overnight, as Barry “Basher” Lewis and his Liberal Democrats hardly had to lift a finger to end up with 51 of the 55 council seats in Sutton.
The LibDems took an iron grip on Sutton Council in the early hours of this morning, thanks to the still-waning popularity of the Conservatives and the corrosive influence of the 55 Reform Ltd candidates seeking election.
The Tories were totally wiped out, losing all 20 councillors.
Labour’s Dave Tchil narrowly retained his Hackbridge seat on a personal vote (no thanks to his erstwhile colleague, Señor Sheldon Vestey) , but in most wards it was the impact of Reform who helped the LibDems consolidate their hold on a council which they have controlled like a one-party state since 1986.
Iron grip: Barry ‘Basher’ Lewis
Never in the history of Sutton Council has Labour had more councillors than the Conservatives. They achieved it in 2026 with just one councillor.
Despite the carnage, at 5am BBC London claimed that the LibDems had limped home by a single seat… despite the LibDems winning upwards of 40% of the vote in most wards.
It wasn’t the first clanger at the Beeb: last month, election expert Prof Tony Travers had predicted that Reform would cause damage to the LibDems, rather than the Tories.
With Reform winning upwards of 30% of the vote in some wards, it was inevitable that a seat or two would come their way. St Helier West saw registered nurse Alison Long and NHS worker Janey Gould take the seats that might see Reform installed as Sutton’s official opposition party.
But it wasn’t just the Reform factor that saw the LibDems romp home. In a ruthless campaign run by former leader Ruth Dombey, the LibDems used their usual tactics of fibs, stolen achievements, dodgy bar charts and downright lies to hammer home the open goal.
The clangers: BBC London got its Sutton result call spectacularly wrong
The Conservative leader of the opposition, Tom Drummond, was skittled out following a “chicken run” to the supposedly safe Cheam ward.
Belmont, North Cheam and Worcester Park South all fell spectacularly, with the Tories pushed into third in North Cheam and Worcester Park South by Reform. There were many wards where the combined Tory and Reform votes failed to match the LibDem totals.
The overall turnout was higher that 2022, at a respectable 46.8%.
In Beddington, LibDem nemesis Nick Mattey won the most votes, despite the LibDems throwing the kitchen sink at the ward. Their desire to remove Mattey was an obsession for many. The level of straight lies in the campaign literature was astonishing, but Mattey couldn’t pull Tim Foster and Tim Crowley over the line with him.
“I can assure everybody in Beddington that despite being on my own, I will give this 100%,” Mattey said.
The result raises some serious issues for the future of local government in Sutton. The existing committee system is now pointless, as it will be totally dominated by the LibDems and there will be very little scrutiny of the administration. The LibDems are addicted to the generous allowances that accompany the committee system. A change to a cabinet model seems inevitable. The allowances will plunge.
The intentions of Reform Ltd were known well before election day, and were confirmed by one of their agents in the hall. “We knew we wouldn’t win, but at least we fucked the Tories up.”
Read more: Reform’s arrival in Sutton could clear path for ruling LibDems
Read more: Sutton LibDem ‘should not be a lawmaker’ after court defeat
Read more: Sutton budget passes with £34.5m deficits to come by 2029
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Hardly factual journalism. Just someone’s biased opinion.
What? The actual election result? Is just someone’s opinion? Twerp.
as I said to the sole Tory candidate standing outside the Sutton South Polling station yesterday morning.
I did not receive a single pre-election communication from the Party.
If the population do not know who is standing, no one can vote for them.