Labour, which was defending far fewer seats this year, was down by 186 seats. It held a trio of mayoralties in Doncaster, North Tyneside and the West of England, but saw its share of the vote significantly dented by Reform in all of them. Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said his party had supplanted the Conservatives as the "party of Middle England" after gaining 163 seats. The Greens gained over 40 seats, but will have been disappointed not to snatch the West of England mayoral contest from Labour, where they came a narrow third to Reform. Labour would have won 20% of the vote, according to the projection, equalling its lowest previous recorded performance in 2009.
