Everything you need to know ahead of Sheffield City Council elections in May
Dozens of council seats are going to face the ballot boxes as the people of Sheffield go out to vote next month.
On Thursday May 7, 2026 more than 5,000 council seats across England will be up for grabs as 136 local authorities host elections.
In Sheffield, that means 28 seats - a third of the total 84 - will be facing the polls to decide the future make-up of Sheffield City Council.
Locally, elections are run on a four-year cycle, with a third of the councillors facing the polls every year and then a gap on the fourth year.
Everyone in a ward can vote, but only for one of the three councillors that represent the area.
During the last elections in 2024, the Conservatives lost all their seats - however, despite their gains Labour was unable to meet the numbers to make a majority party.
Since 2020, Sheffield has not had an overall majority party, though Labour’s Tom Hunt has been agreed upon by sitting members to act as council leader.
Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Green party collaborate to form the council’s leading administration and splitting the chairs of committees between them.
Labour remain the biggest party in the city, with 35 seats, followed by the Liberal Democrats with 27, Green with 14, Sheffield Community Councillors four, one independent and one for Reform.
A by-election in Stocksbridge last year saw John Booker - a former UKIP councillor - become the city’s first Reform councillor, as the Nigel Farage-led party are pushing hard across the nation ahead of May’s election.
However, the Green party are also hopeful ahead of the coming election, as members hope a recent parliamentary by-election victory in Gorton and Denton - which saw Hannah Spencer become MP - and the new leadership under Zack Polanski has reinvigorated national interest.
Anyone interested in voting must register ahead of time.
The deadline for registration is 11.59pm on Monday, April 20 .
Applications to register can be made online at gov.uk/register-to-vote.
The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on Tuesday April 21 - applications can be made online at gov.uk/apply-postal-vote.
The deadline to apply for a proxy vote, to allow someone to vote at a polling station on your behalf, is 5pm on Tuesday April 28 .
Applications for a proxy vote can be made online at gov.uk/apply-proxy-vote.