Yahoo News Sunderland City Council local elections 2024: All the candidates and seats to watch on polling day
On May 2, as part of the 2024 local elections, voters across Wearside will cast their votes.
The Labour Group of Sunderland City Council is striving to maintain its hold on power in the city, having gained three seats in the previous year's election.
Although Labour's overall control of the council isn't at risk this year, it's set to be an intriguing election night with several contests to watch.
Here's all you need to know about what's going on in Sunderland ahead of polling day.
How many councillor seats are up for election?
On polling day, 25 seats are available, with one seat being contested in each of the city's 25 wards.
Each ward across the city has three seats and is represented by three councillors.
As Sunderland City Council operates its elections by 'thirds', only one councillor will be elected to each ward across the city on May 2, 2024.
What is the current composition of the council?
Labour has held power on Sunderland City Council for many years and despite losing seats to opposition parties in recent years, it still maintains majority control of the local authority.
The political landscape of the council has shifted over the past year, both before and after the local elections, due to a number of defections from opposition councillors.
Currently, the Labour Group holds sway in the council with 47 of the 75 seats, while the Sunderland Conservatives form the principal opposition with 13 councillors.
The Wearside Liberal Democrats are positioned as the third largest party on the council with a dozen councillors, and Reform UK has a single councillor representing the smallest opposition party.
As it stands, there's one independent councillor and a vacancy that was previously held by an independent.
Who leads the council?
Since 2018, Councillor Graeme Miller has been at the helm of the council leadership. Despite Labour experiencing significant seat losses to opposition parties in past elections, the 2023 local elections marked a positive turn for Labour, retaining crucial seats and even making gains.
Cllr Miller expressed his satisfaction with the results, stating that it signalled the city's electorate "beginning to have trust in us again".
Looking ahead to the 2024 local elections, approximately half of the 25 seats up for election are currently held by opposition councillors, including those from the Sunderland Conservatives and Wearside Liberal Democrats.
A number of high-profile Labour councillors are also gearing up to defend their positions, among them three members of the city's ruling cabinet who oversee city development, health, and culture.
Which seats are up for grabs?
Labour is setting its sights on wresting control from opposition parties in areas where they performed well last year.
The Barnes and St Anne's wards, currently held by Conservative councillors, are among the areas being targeted by Labour and other political parties in Ryhope. The Sunderland Conservatives, listed as 'Local Conservatives' on this year's ballot papers, will be defending seats across the city in several wards.
These include St Chad's ward on Sunderland's outskirts, St Michael's ward covering Ashbrooke and Tunstall, and St Peter's ward, which includes parts of the riverside and Roker. The Fulwell ward is particularly noteworthy, with the last remaining Conservative councillor for Fulwell, Michael Hartnack, defending his seat following previous Lib Dem gains in the area.
Meanwhile, the Wearside Liberal Democrats aim to defend seats in Doxford, Hendon, Millfield, Pallion, and Sandhill wards. Pallion ward, once a Lib Dem stronghold, now has only one representative from the party after several defections in 2023.
Lib Dem councillor George Smith joined the Labour Party, and Lib Dem councillor Colin Nicholson left the party to sit as an independent. Cllr Nicholson's seat, which he is not contesting this year, is up for grabs, with the Wearside Liberal Democrats aiming to defend it against Labour, Local Conservatives, Reform UK, and the Green Party.
The Wearside Liberal Democrats are set to defend their lone seat in the Hendon ward, following Labour's victories in the last two local election rounds.
Washington has predominantly been a Labour stronghold in recent polls, with only the Green Party and Conservatives managing to secure seats in the Washington South ward previously.
As we approach this year's local elections, councillor Paul Donaghy stands as the sole incumbent opposition councillor in the broader Washington area, defending his seat for Reform UK.
The councillor, initially elected as a Conservative before switching allegiance to Reform UK in early 2023, is also the Reform UK candidate in this year's elections for the newly formed North East Mayoral Combined Authority.
Reform UK fielded local election candidates across Sunderland last year and aims to increase their representation on the city council in 2024, with candidates contesting in every ward.
What else should we keep an eye out for on election night?
The Green Party has put forward candidates in most of the city's wards this year, hoping to reclaim a spot on Sunderland City Council.
The Green Party's first and only representative on the council, Dom Armstrong, stepped down as a councillor in 2021 after a disagreement with the national party, and since then, the Greens have not managed to secure a city council seat.
Labour cabinet members Kevin Johnston, Kelly Chequer, and John Price will be fighting to retain their seats in the Copt Hill, Southwick, and Houghton wards respectively.
The current and former leaders of the Wearside Liberal Democrats, Paul Edgeworth and Niall Hodson, are set to defend their seats in the Sandhill and Millfield wards respectively.
Councillor Lyall Reed, the deputy leader of the Sunderland Conservatives, is also up for re-election in St Michael's ward.
Several independent candidates and serving councillors on Hetton Town Council will be contesting again in the Houghton and Hetton wards.
Following the decision by veteran Labour councillor Patricia Smith not to stand for re-election, a new councillor will be elected for the Silksworth ward.
What can voters expect on May 2?
On May 2, polling stations across the city will be open until 10pm.
After the polls close, the ballot boxes will be transported to Silksworth Community Pool, Tennis and Wellness Centre for verification and counting.
The results will be announced ward by ward throughout the night, with the final result expected either late on May 2 or in the early hours of the following day.
In the weeks following the local elections, an annual meeting of Sunderland City Council typically takes place to assign councillors to committees and positions, as well as to appoint a new Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Sunderland.
Here's the full list of Sunderland City Council candidates hoping to secure your vote on May 2, 2024.
BARNES.
Alan Douglas BILTON (Reform UK).
Richard DUNN (Local Conservatives).
Tim ELLIS-DALE (Liberal Democrat).
Fiona TOBIN (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Mark Dominic TYERS (Green Party Candidate).
CASTLE.
Mia COUPLAND (Liberal Democrat).
Dawn Marie JACKSON (Green Party Candidate).
Christopher John ROSE (Local Conservatives).
Keith SAMME (Reform UK).
Denny WILSON (Labour Party).
COPT HILL.
Nana BODDY (Liberal Democrat).
Benjamin William DAVIES-SCOTT (Local Conservatives).
Kevin JOHNSTON (Labour Party).
Michael John LORRAINE (Reform UK).
Andrew ROBERTSON (Green Party Candidate).
DOXFORD.
Martha Rachel Maitland BRADLEY (Green Party Candidate).
George Edward BROWN (Local Conservatives).
Paul Wilfred Leslie GIBSON (Liberal Democrat).
Liz HIGHMORE (Labour Party).
Susan LATHAN (Reform UK).
FULWELL.
Michael Peter HARTNACK (Local Conservatives).
Lisa Marie HILTON (Reform UK).
Kevin LYNCH (Green Party Candidate).
Miguel Smith (Liberal Democrat).
Andy STAFFORD (Labour Party).
HENDON.
Lynda Joyce ANDREWS (Reform UK).
Stephen Lewis ELMS (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Georgina Debra GOULD (Local Conservatives).
Helmut IZAKS (Green Party Candidate).
Ciaran Joseph MORRISSEY (Liberal Democrat).
HETTON.
James BLACKBURN (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Ian David ELLIS (Liberal Democrat).
David William GEDDIS (Independent).
Stephen William HOLT (Reform UK).
Rachel Louise LOWE (Green Party Candidate).
Connor SINCLAIR (Local Conservatives).
HOUGHTON.
Lynda ALEXANDER (Reform UK).
Sharon BODDY (Liberal Democrat).
Alyson KORDBARLAG (Green Party Candidate).
Craig MORRISON (Local Conservatives).
John PRICE (Labour Party).
Donna Sarah THOMAS (Independent).
MILLFIELD.
Syed ALI (Labour Party).
Hardipsinh BARAD (Local Conservatives).
Richard Peter BRADLEY (Green Party Candidate).
Kathryn Annette BROWN (Reform UK).
Niall Dane Hodson (Liberal Democrat Focus Team).
PALLION.
Steven Boyd DONKIN (Liberal Democrat).
Gwennyth GIBSON (Local Conservatives).
Raymond LATHAN (Reform UK).
Dorothy LYNCH (Green Party Candidate).
Karen NOBLE (Labour Party).
REDHILL.
Steven John DALE (Liberal Democrat).
Chris EYNON (Reform UK).
Susan Elizabeth LEISHMAN (Local Conservatives).
Alison SMITH (Labour and Co-operative Party).
RYHOPE.
Janice Susan ELLIS (Liberal Democrat).
Helen GLANCY (Labour Party).
Kevin LEONARD (Local Conservatives).
Tony Nathan THOMPSON (Reform UK).
SANDHILL.
Adam AISTON (Local Conservatives).
Brian ALEXANDER (Reform UK).
Dennis CARROLL (Labour Party).
Paul EDGEWORTH (Liberal Democrat).
Robert WELSH (Green Party Candidate).
SHINEY ROW.
Katherine MASON-GAGE (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Thomas Alexander MOWER (Green Party Candidate).
Michael Keith PEACOCK (Liberal Democrat).
Christine Mary Reed (Local Conservatives).
Robert SNOWDON (Reform UK).
SILKSWORTH.
Mauro Alfiero AMATOSI (Liberal Democrat).
Sophie CLINTON (Labour Party).
Michael ELLIS (Reform UK).
Rachel Sara FEATHERSTONE (Green Party Candidate).
Owen SNAITH (Local Conservatives).
SOUTHWICK.
Kelly CHEQUER (Labour Party).
Christopher Michael CROZIER (Green Party Candidate).
Michael DAGG (Liberal Democrat).
Bryan Witherwick REYNOLDS (Local Conservatives).
James WILSON (Reform UK).
ST ANNE'S.
Lynne Susan DAGG (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Simon Andrew HUGHES (Green Party Candidate).
Greg Peacock (Local Conservatives).
Audrey Catherine SMITH (Liberal Democrat).
Sam David WOODS-BRASS (Reform UK).
ST CHAD'S.
Chris BURNICLE (Local Conservatives).
Scott Andrew BURROWS (Green Party Candidate).
Andrew John ROWNTREE (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Sheila SAMME (Reform UK).
Anthony USHER (Liberal Democrat).
ST MICHAEL'S.
John Leonard APPLETON (Green Party Candidate).
Jo COOPER (Labour Party).
Neil FARRER (Reform UK).
Lyall Jonathan REED (Local Conservatives).
Colin Andrew WILSON (Liberal Democrat).
ST PETER'S.
David CRAIG (Reform UK).
Liam DUFFERWIEL (Green Party Candidate).
Sam Martin JOHNSTON (Local Conservatives).
John Anthony LENNOX (Liberal Democrat).
David NEWEY (Labour and Co-operative Party).
WASHINGTON CENTRAL.
Audrey JAITAY (Local Conservatives).
Raymond John MOORE (Green Party Candidate).
Dianne Elizabeth SNOWDON (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Aimee Lynette TROW (Reform UK).
Linda Mary WOOD (Liberal Democrat).
WASHINGTON EAST.
Hilary JOHNSON (Local Conservatives).
Sean Robert LAWS (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Ashton Hektor MUNCASTER (Reform UK).
Crispin Melvill WELBY (Liberal Democrat).
WASHINGTON NORTH.
Elizabeth BROWN (Reform UK).
Svetlana RAKHIMOVA (Local Conservatives).
Michael Lee Walker (Labour Party).
Carlton Lee West (Liberal Democrat).
WASHINGTON SOUTH.
Michal CHANTKOWSKI (Green Party Candidate).
Paul Donaghy (Reform UK).
Brandon Mark FEELEY (Labour and Co-operative Party).
Peter James NOBLE (Local Conservatives).
Sean TERRY (Liberal Democrat).
WASHINGTON WEST.
Andrew Philip BEX (Liberal Democrat).
Sam COSGROVE (Local Conservatives).
Paul Andrew LEONARD (Green Party Candidate).
Deborah Ann LORRAINE (Reform UK).
Jimmy WARNE (Labour Party).
