Well, it’s fair to say that the local elections did not go the way we wanted. It was of little surprise that we lost some excellent councillors after the 7th May, as voters focused on national issues rather than the local issues that their councillors can help to solve.
Reform campaigned on the national narrative, promising what we know they can’t deliver. Despite this, many people in Wigan did vote Labour – some Labour candidates gaining over 1,000 votes in the wards they lost in. There was a slightly higher turnout than usual (38%) and in some wards this was the highest turnout since the General Election in 2015.
Labour as a party lost over 1,000 council seats, and it’s clear there is now work to be done to claw back popularity before the next local elections in 2027 and 2028 and, of course, the 2029 General Election. While members may have different views as to how this can be done nationally, at local level we wanted to offer some suggestions.
What can Wigan Labour voters do to help?
One of the main points to remember here is that while Reform took many of our seats here in Wigan Borough, a large proportion of the electorate did vote for Labour. We have got support here and always have had – and we need to strengthen that support within our branches and wider communities.
Local councillors and candidates have to be more visible and campaigning must be done all year round – something we have been working hard on recently and will continue to spend time on.
Members can bolster their local branches by attending meetings, encouraging friends and family to sign up to join the party, and by being active campaigners. If you aren’t already on Labour Hub, we recommend that as a great place to start.
As a Constituency Labour Party (CLP) we plan to run more social and fundraising events and details of these will come via email so please check your email settings in Labour Hub to ensure you are getting all the communication from your local branch and from the CLP.
Worried about the rise of the right?
There is an organisation specifically set up to fight racism and bring communities together in Wigan. It’s called Wigan Borough in Unity and if you are interested in joining future meetings/events, please email and asked to be added to the mailing list: wiganinunity@gmail.com
The rise of racism in this country is worrying and attitudes have allowed people who previously would have been ashamed to let their prejudices show on public forums such as social media or even while out in public no longer have a filter. We all need to stop this and ensure our nation is an inclusive, tolerant and respectful place to live – for all of our sakes.
