English voters elected more women than men in mayoral contests

Four out of six mayoral polls were won by women

Re-elected and newly elected English women mayors (left to right): Ros Jones (Doncaster), Karen Clark (North Tyneside), Helen Godwin (West of England), Andrea Jenkyns (Greater Lincolnshire)

May 2025: On 1 May, voters in many parts of England elected new local councils, four metro mayors, and two city mayors. The right-wing Reform UK Party and the centre-left Liberal Democrats made large gains while the Labour Party and the Conservative Party lost hundreds of seats in their respective ‘heartlands’ in the North and South of England. Voters who supported Labour in the 2024 general election switched to Reform in droves. Four out of six mayoral contests were won by women.

Election winners

Before the British referendum on EU membership, Reform UK, formerly known as the Brexit Party, pushed for the UK’s exit from the European Union and now strongly supports anti-DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) and anti-immigrant policies. Its leader, Nigel Farage, is an admirer of US President Donald Trump, whom he hailed as his inspiration. In this month’s local elections, the party benefited from voters’ disillusionment with the Labour government. The party was particularly successful in the Midlands and the North of England, both parts of the country that traditionally voted for Labour.

The Liberal Democrats, Britain’s most pro-European party, won more than 160 new seats, almost entirely from the Conservatives in southern and western counties of England. The party took control of Oxfordshire, Cambridgeshire, and Shropshire County Councils and is the largest party in Devon, Hertfordshire, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire. However, it failed to win any of the mayoral races.

Elected mayors

Greater Lincolnshire’s first metro mayor will be Andrea Jenkyns from Reform UK. She received 40 per cent of the vote, some 14 percentage points ahead of the Conservative candidate. The new mayor, who switched from the Conservative Party to Reform UK, was a Tory member of Parliament from 2015 to 2024. For a few months in 2022, she was a junior member of Boris Johnson’s government.

The mayorship of the newly created metro region of Hull and East Yorkshire was won by Luke Campbell from Reform UK. The newly elected mayor, who won an Olympic gold medal in boxing in 2012, said that boxing required courage, tenacity and bravery, which I have in huge abundance.

Labour successfully defended its hold on the West of England metro region. Helen Godwin fended off a challenge from Reform, with the Green Party candidate in a strong third place. The new mayor will be replacing Dan Norris, who led the region from 2021 to 2025.

Ros Jones, England’s longest-serving female mayor, was re-elected in Doncaster with a wafer-thin majority of 700 votes. In the weeks leading up to the election, the Labour mayor faced an increasingly strong challenge from her Reform opponent.

The Labour Party also managed to hold on to the mayorship of North Tyneside. The newly elected mayor, Karen Clark, will be replacing Norma Redfearn, who decided to step down after 12 years in office.

Cambridgeshire & Peterborough delivered a consolation prize for the Conservatives. The party’s successful candidate, Paul Bristow, benefited from former Labour voters switching to the right-wing Reform Party and the centre-left Liberal Democrats. Bristow was a conservative Member of Parliament for Peterborough from 2019 to 2024. In last year’s general election, he was defeated by his Labour opponent.

Women mayors

Ros Jones, Mayor of Doncaster, Labour

Britain’s longest-serving female mayor was first elected in 2013 and re-elected in 2017, 2021 and on 1 May 2025. In her most recent election, she defeated her opponent from the Reform Party by a mere 700 votes. She will now have to work with the city council controlled by the right-wing Reform Party. Ros Jones was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her services to local government. One year later, the City Mayors Foundation awarded her the World Mayor Commendation for her services to the City of Doncaster.

Karen Clark, Mayor of North Tyneside, Labour

The newly elected mayor, a local girl, was a member of the North Tynside Council from 2015 to 2024. Her mayoral victory on 1 May 2025 was extremely close, defeating her opponent from Reform by less than 500 votes. In 2021, Clark was appointed to the cabinet of North Tyneside mayor Norma Redfearn as the cabinet member for public health and wellbeing.

Helen Godwin, Mayor of the West of England, Labour

Helen Godwin, who grew up in Bristol, served as one of the city’s councillors from 2016 to 2021. In August 2021, she joined the international business consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers (Pwc) in the government and health sectors, later becoming National Children's Services and Education Lead.

Andrea Jenkyns, Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire, Reform UK

The new mayor, who switched from the Conservative Party to Reform, was a Tory member of Parliament from 2015 to 2024. For a few months in 2022, she was a junior member of Boris Johnson’s government and briefly of the Liz Truss administration before being dismissed by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Andrea Jenkyns lost her parliamentary seat in the 2024 general election.

Election results

(Gains/losses in brackets)

Council elections were held in England on 1 May 2025 across 23 local authorities. In addition, there were six mayoral elections. From 2021 to 2025, she served under former mayor Norma Redfearn as her cabinet member for public health and wellbeing.

Labour Party

Share of the vote 20% (-14%)

Council seats won 98 (-187)

Mayorships won 3 (-1)

Elected mayors Ros Jones (Doncaster), Karen Clark (North Tyneside), Helen Godwin (West of England)

Conservative Party

Share of the vote 15% (-10%)

Council seats won 319 (-674)

Mayorships won 1 (0)

Elected mayor Paul Bristow (Cambridgeshire & Peterborough)

Liberal Democrats

Share of the vote 17% (+0%)

Council seats won 370 (+163)

Reform UK

Share of the vote 30% (+28%)

Council seats won 677 (+677)

Mayorships won 2 (+2)

Elected mayors Andrea Jenkyns (Greater Lincolnshire), Luke Campbell (Hull & East Yorkshire)

Green Party

Share of the vote 11% (-2%)

Council seats won 79 (+44)

Independents

Council seats won 88 (-11)

Further reading: British women mayors |

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