The South London borough now finds itself under no overall control, with the Conservatives winning the most seats, but falling just two seats short of an outright majority.
The Tories secured 29 seats on Wandsworth Council, marking a gain of seven from the 22 they held in 2022, and placing them one seat shy of the 30 required for a majority. Labour now has 28 seats, down seven from the 35 seats it won at the last election.
Independent councillor Malcolm Grimston retained his seat, securing the highest number of votes with 4,081.
Sources said the Conservatives are planning to make an arrangement with Councillor Grimston so that he would support the party on crucial votes over the next term – including the budget – while remaining an Independent.
Conservative leader Aled Richards-Jones said he was “really delighted” with the results, which he said would see the Tories “take back control” of the council.
Wandsworth Conservatives leader Aled Richards-Jones
Charlotte Lillywhite/LDRS
It was a bitterly disappointing night for Labour and a far cry from 2022, when the party took control of the former Tory stronghold for the first time since 1978 – ending 44 years of Conservative control.
But the Conservatives still failed to secure a majority in what was once known as Margaret Thatcher’s favourite council, at the forefront of the former Tory leader’s Right to Buy scheme and the privatisation of local services.
Labour had 34 of the council’s 58 seats going into this election after losing a by-election to the Tories in 2024, while the Conservatives had 21 seats after Councillor Mark Justin defected to Reform.
Labour, the Conservatives, Lib Dems and Reform UK each stood 58 candidates in Thursday’s elections in Wandsworth, while The Green Party put forward 53 candidates. A total of six Independents also battled for a seat.
Here are the full results in Wandsworth
Wandsworth (Total number of seats: 58)
Winner: No Overall Control (Labour loss)