# 2002 United Kingdom local elections

The 2002 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 2 May 2002. All London borough council seats were elected as well a third of the seats on each of the Metropolitan Boroughs. Many unitary Authorities and District councils also had elections. There were no local elections in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. This was the last time that Labour was the majority in local government until 2023.

## Summary of results

Simon Parker of The Guardian described the elections as "a round of embarrassing [sic] defeats for Labour in a set of council elections that also saw opposition parties making minor inroads into the party's dominant position in local government. [...] But the night really belonged to independents and the smaller parties, who made some high-profile gains as the voters expressed their dissatisfaction with mainstream politics."

## England
### London boroughs

In all 32 London boroughs, the whole council was up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Barking and Dagenham ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Barnet ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Bexley ‡ | No overall control | Labour gain | Details |
| Brent ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Bromley ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Camden ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Croydon ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Ealing ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Enfield ‡ | Labour | Conservative gain | Details |
| Greenwich ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Hackney ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Hammersmith and Fulham ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Haringey ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Harrow ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Havering ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Hillingdon ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Hounslow ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Islington ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Kensington and Chelsea ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Kingston upon Thames ‡ | No overall control | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Lambeth ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Lewisham ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Merton ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Newham ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Redbridge ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Richmond upon Thames ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain | Details |
| Southwark ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Sutton ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Tower Hamlets ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Waltham Forest ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Wandsworth ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Westminster ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
‡ New ward boundaries

### Metropolitan boroughs

All 36 English Metropolitan borough councils had one third of their seats up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Barnsley | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Birmingham | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Bolton | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Bradford | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Bury | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Calderdale | Conservative | No overall control gain (Conservative Minority) | Details |
| Coventry | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Doncaster | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Dudley | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Gateshead | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Kirklees | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Knowsley | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Leeds | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Liverpool | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Manchester | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| North Tyneside | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Oldham | Liberal Democrats | No overall control gain | Details |
| Rochdale | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Rotherham | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Salford | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Sandwell | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Sefton | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Sheffield | Liberal Democrats | No overall control gain | Details |
| Solihull | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| South Tyneside | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| St Helens | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Stockport | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Sunderland | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Tameside | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Trafford | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Wakefield | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Walsall | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Wigan | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Wirral | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Wolverhampton | Labour | Labour hold | Details |

### Unitary authorities
#### Whole council

In six English Unitary authorities, the whole council was up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Derby ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Kingston upon Hull ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Milton Keynes ‡ | No overall control | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Portsmouth ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Southampton ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Stoke-on-Trent ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
‡ New ward boundaries

#### Third of council

In 12 English Unitary authorities, one third of the council was up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Blackburn with Darwen | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Bristol | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Halton | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Hartlepool | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Peterborough | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Reading | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Slough | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Southend-on-Sea | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Swindon | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Thurrock | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Warrington | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Wokingham | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |

### District councils
#### Whole council

In 46 English district authorities, the whole council was up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Basildon ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Basingstoke and Deane ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Bassetlaw ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Bedford ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Brentwood ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Burnley ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Cannock Chase ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Cheltenham ‡ | Conservative | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Cherwell ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Chorley ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Colchester ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Craven ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Eastbourne ‡ | Conservative | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Eastleigh ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Epping Forest ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Fareham ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Gloucester ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Gosport ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Harlow ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Harrogate ‡ | Liberal Democrats | No overall control gain | Details |
| Hart ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Hastings ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Havant ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Hyndburn ‡ | Conservative | Labour gain | Details |
| Ipswich ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Maidstone ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Newcastle-under-Lyme ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Nuneaton and Bedworth ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Oxford ‡ | No overall control | Labour gain | Details |
| Pendle ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Preston ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Rochford ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Rossendale ‡ | Conservative | Labour gain | Details |
| Rugby ‡ | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Rushmoor ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Shrewsbury and Atcham ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| South Bedfordshire ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Stratford-on-Avon ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Stroud ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Swale ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Tamworth ‡ | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Tunbridge Wells ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Waveney ‡ | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| West Lancashire ‡ | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| West Oxfordshire ‡ | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Winchester ‡ | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
‡ New ward boundaries

#### Third of council

In 42 English district authorities, one third of the council was up for election.
| Council | Previous control | Result | Details |
| Adur | No overall control | Conservative gain | Details |
| Amber Valley | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Barrow-in-Furness | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Broadland | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Broxbourne | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Cambridge | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Carlisle | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Chester | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Congleton | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Crawley | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Crewe and Nantwich | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Daventry | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Ellesmere Port and Neston | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Elmbridge | No overall control | Residents gain | Details |
| Exeter | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Great Yarmouth | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Hertsmere | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Huntingdonshire | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Lincoln | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Macclesfield | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Mole Valley | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| North Hertfordshire | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Norwich | Labour | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Penwith | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Purbeck | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Redditch | Labour | No overall control gain | Details |
| Reigate and Banstead | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Runnymede | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| South Cambridgeshire | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| South Lakeland | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| St Albans | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Stevenage | Labour | Labour hold | Details |
| Tandridge | Conservative | Conservative hold | Details |
| Three Rivers | Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats hold | Details |
| Watford | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Welwyn Hatfield | Labour | Conservative gain | Details |
| West Lindsey | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Weymouth and Portland | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Woking | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Worcester | No overall control | No overall control hold | Details |
| Worthing | Conservative | Liberal Democrats gain | Details |
| Wyre Forest | No overall control | Health Concern gain | Details |

### Mayoral elections

There were seven elections for directly elected mayors.
| Local Authority | Previous Mayor | Mayor-elect | Details |
| Doncaster | New Post | Martin Winter (Labour) | |
| Hartlepool | New Post | Stuart Drummond (Independent) | Details |
| Lewisham | New Post | Steve Bullock (Labour) | |
| Middlesbrough | New Post | Ray Mallon (Independent) | |
| Newham | New Post | Robin Wales (Labour) | |
| North Tyneside | New Post | Chris Morgan (Conservative) | |
| Watford | New Post | Dorothy Thornhill (Liberal Democrat) | Details |