Reform UK won Havering council with a majority, their first in a London borough as the party added to a commanding set of local election results.
Overall Reform UK gained 39 seats out of 55, whilst former leading party the Havering Residents Association (HRA) held on to only 14 seats.
It was a wipeout for the Conservatives, who lost all 16 of their seats, while Labour bucked expectations by clinging onto two seats in the Beam Park Ward.
This almighty shift was expected, but the extent of which remained a shock.
With an average turnout of 45.71% across each ward, it showed that Reform’s message was a hit with voters across the borough.
Romford MP Andrew Rossendale, who had recently defected from the Tories to Reform UK, said: “I believe people are fed up with Labour and they have been let down by the Conservatives.
“Reform UK are offering something new, more radical, a fresh start.”
However, not all councillors were convinced by Reform’s success.
Julie Wilkes, who won in Hacton for the HRA, said: “It’s a protest vote, people are unhappy with the current government so have used this to show their discontent.”
This was the feeling from many non-Reform councillors across the borough, who had expected their seats to be swiped away.
Jane Elizabeth Keane, who had been a Labour councillor for St Albans since 2022, said: “I am confident I will get re-elected; people were positive on the doors we could get votes.”
But like so many, she did not – losing her ward to married Reform UK candidates and pub owners Diane and Russel Smith.
The couple, who have run The Wheatsheaf pub in Romford for 25 years, said that in the last ten years, everything had declined.
Like many Reform candidates, the Smiths were former Tory voters who had become disillusioned during their time in charge.
“The Conservatives policies were not favouring us anymore; we haven’t seen improvements,” they said.
For those in turquoise, it was a night to celebrate and a turning of the political tides for this northeastern part of London.
Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage appeared at the Havering town hall this morning. Speaking to the NE Londoner, he called the swing a “fundamental change”.
The MP for Claton said: “Our plan is to keep building but we still have a lot of work to do.
“I was asked before Christmas how complete the Reform project was, I said then we were about halfway there, we are now more than two thirds of the way to where we want to be.
“We want to turn the country around.”
This was a result that mirrored so many other parts of the country and surely will add to the pressure on Prime Minister Kier Starmer.
Addressing the calls for the Labour leader to resign, Farage said sarcastically: “I would be very sad to see the Prime Minster leave.”
Reform UK will now be confident they can take this momentum into what now looks like a serious run for power.
With the London Mayor elections in two years’ time and a general election not far on the horizon, only time will tell if local success can translate nationally.
Featured image credit: Oscar Stevens
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