WOKINGHAM went to the polls on May 2, the first election under the new ward boundaries.
As a result, all 54 seats were up for grabs, over 18 wards that had never before been contested.
The Lib Dems had hoped to win an overall majority. And while they gained one seat, it was not enough for an overall majority.
However, they will continue to run the council as the Conservatives leader Pauline Jorgensen told Wokingham Today she would rule out forming a coalition with Labour.
The Conservatives lost ground: three seats down on last year’s tally, taking them to 19 seats in the chamber.
Labour, on the other hand, have seen their representation increase. In 2021, they had just two councillors. They now have eight – an increase of three on last year.
Here is how people voted on a ward-by-ward basis.
Barkham and Arborfield Ward
This new ward is created from parts of Barkham and parts of Arborfield (how did they come up with the name?).
Long-standing independent councillor Gary Cowan retired at this election, as did Ian Pittock from Barkham. Whoever won would be a fresh face in the chamber, and essentially, this seat was a wide-open contest.
In the end, that is exactly how the electorate treated it. The difference between second and fourth place was 18 votes, and second and fifth 42 votes. It could have gone either way.
Lib Dem Adrian Betteridge topped the poll with 1,018 votes, 36 ahead of second placed Joseph Barley for the Conservatives with 982 votes. George Evans, another Conservative, was third on 973.
Joseph Boadu had 964 votes and fellow Lib Dem Heather Richards was fifth with 940. It really was close.
Bulmershe & Coronation
This was an interesting marriage. Coronation was one of the bluest of blue wards on the borough council, while Bulmershe & Whitegates was a mixture of Labour and Conservatives, often tussling for a seat.
How this new ward would go was anyone’s guess.
The Conservatives won all three seats comfortably, with Alison Swaddle and Shahid Younis netting more than twice the vote of fourth placed candidate, Lib Dem Paul Barton.
So far, so straightforward.
In fifth place was Labour’s Kirsten McFarlane, then the order goes Lib Dem, Labour, Green, Labour and Lib Dem. There was not much in it: Paul Barton’s 632 votes was enough for fourth place, while Sheila Jordan took the wooden spoon with 467.
Whether the 2026 contest will be closer remains to be seen.
Emmbrook
Not even a challenge from a former council leader could make a dent on this Lib Dem stronghold.
Seasoned councillors Rachel Bishop-Firth and Imogen Shepherd-DuBey topped the poll, with newcomer Basit Alvi in third place for the Lib Dems.
He was 500 votes ahead of David Lee, who used to run the council.
The poll order was a clear order of party preference: Lib Dems, Conservatives, Greens and Labour.
Evendons
Like Emmbrook, this has become another Lib Dem stronghold, with the party polling almost double the Conservatives’ share of the vote.
And like Emmbrook, the parties are ranked in voters’ preference: three Lib Dems, three Conservatives, and three Labour candidates.
Heading the poll was Mark Ashwell, who previously served as an executive member for the Conservatives. He switched to the Lib Dems last year, and has found a berth in Evendons.
Given his talents and previous experience, it would be no surprise if he was called into the new executive.
In second place was another party switcher: Lou Timlin previously stood in this ward for the Women’s Equality Party, but made a change last year.
Current deputy borough mayor, Adrian Mather, was in third place meaning it is possible he could be elected mayor at the annual council meeting later this month.
Finchampstead
Previously, Finchampstead residents were either North or South, but a reunification has taken place, and instead of six councillors there are now three.
Given the Lib Dems had won representation here in previous elections, the seat was always going to be a battleground. This was compounded by the California Crossroads works.
Originally proposed by the Conservatives, the project was continued by the Lib Dems. The full story is complicated, but the long and short of it is simple: the project is funded by money from developers working on Arborfield Green, and could only be used on works in the surrounding area.
The Conservatives campaigned relentlessly on the issue, and it appears to have paid off, with David Cornish losing his seat.
But it was a close-run thing. The former Cllr Cornish was within a whisker of beating Peter Harper to third place.
Husband and wife team Charles and Rebecca Margetts topped the ward, taking the seat for the Conservatives.
Newcomers Becky Eytle and Fiona Dignan were in fourth and fifth respectively and didn’t disgrace themselves, with 1498 and 1404 votes – enough to win many other wards.
They were 1200 votes ahead of Labour’s candidates, who all polled under 250 votes each.
Turnout was high – 44.82%.
Hawkedon
The Earley seats have always been a tussle between Conservatives and Lib Dems, so it was no surprise to see honours shared in this new-look Hawkedon seat. But it was so tight, one seat was determined by drawing lots.
Lib Dem executive member David Hare topped the poll with 1433, just 20 votes ahead of second placed newcomer, Rohit Ahlawat for the Conservatives.
Also new to the chamber is Melanie De Jong, who came third for the Lib Dems with 1356, just one vote ahead of Andrew Mickleburgh, another Lib Dem, who had 1355 votes.
The difference between the two? A straw poll. Quite literally.
They originally tied, so had to draw lots to decide who would represent the council. It’s the political version of a penalty shoot out and just as heartbreaking for the loser.
Former Conservative councillors Tim Holton and Guy Grandison did reasonably well with 1293 votes and 1274 votes respectively, but not enough to get elected.
Hillside
This was a ward the Lib Dems wanted to win, and were knocking on doors to get the vote out right up until the polls closed.
But it was in vain.
Pauline Jorgensen, the leader of Wokingham Conservatives, was streets ahead of the opposition. Her 1699 was more than 300 votes ahead of third placed former mayor, Lib Dem Caroline Smith.
Newcomer Moses Iyengunmwena came second with 1399 votes, adding to the Conservative presence in the chamber.
The result means Al Neal loses his seat for the Lib Dems.
Like Hawkedon, expect this seat to be a battleground when it comes up for election in 2026.
Loddon
Woodley Labour has put a lot of effort into trying to win election in former Conservative stronghold Loddon.
Last year, they came close, this year they scooped all three seats in what is something of a coup for the party.
Long-time campaigner and town councillor Greg Bello topped the poll with 1,338 votes. Fellow town councillor Majid Nagra was second with 1,316, and younger candidate Alex Freeney was third with 1,159 votes.
This was nearly 130 votes head of best placed Conservative councillor David Bragg on 1,033.
The defeat means a farewell to long-time councillors Bill Soane and Abdul Loyes, both familiar faces around Woodley.
The question now is whether Labour will be able to keep the seat when it is up for grabs in 2026.
Maiden Erlegh and Whitegates
A ward that was wide open, by virtue of being a kind-of merger between the old Bulmershe and Whitegates seat and parts of Maiden Erlegh.
In the end it was a close race between all three main parties. Honours had to be shared.
While Norman Jorgensen scooped top place with 1,187 votes, he was just five ahead of Stephen Newton for the Lib Dems.
Andy Ng Sui-Hong came third, the Lib Dem newcomer pipping Mike Smith to the final seat in the chamber.
Mike’s 1,133 votes was just 23 ahead of the Conservatives’ Wazir Hussain; Labour’s Richard McKenzie was within touching distance, and on the different day could have taken a seat for Labour.
The result means a farewell to Labour’s Tony Skuse, whose 898 votes weren’t enough to see him stay in the chamber.
The only independent candidate in the borough this time was Ibrahim Mohammed. He came last with a respectable 336 votes.
Norreys
Labour claimed a Conservative scalp and saw the ward turn completely red as a result.
Newcomer Nagi Nagella came third with 1,063 votes: exactly 100 ahead of fourth placed rival, Paul Cunnington, who loses his seat in the chamber.
The poll was topped by former Labour leader Rachel Burgess, with 1,398 votes. Marie-Louise Weighill was second with 1,128.
The Conservatives had the next three positions, and the Lib Dems all came next.
Holding up the rear, with 69 votes, was TUSC (The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition) candidate Sara Gillman.
Shinfield
As in Norreys, Labour made a gain here, seeing newcomer Sarah Bell top the poll with 997 votes.
Second placed Andrew Gray’s 923 was enough to see the councillor win a second election.
The Conservatives’ newcomer, Vishal Srinivasan came third with 881.
The results means Jackie Rance loses her seat.
It was close: all three seats could have been Labour’s, as Varinder Anand came a respective fifth with 867 votes, while Hilary Pollock had 855. On a different day, any of them could have taken that third seat in the chamber.
South Lake
This was a Lib Dem target, doubly so with Laura Blumenthal stepping down to concentrate on a parliamentary campaign.
They will be both frustrated and delighted with the results, gaining an additional councillor, but coming short of taking all three seats from the Conservatives.
Heading the poll was Conservative Kay Gilder, a former Woodley town mayor and well-known in the area.
She had 1180 votes, exactly 100 ahead of Lib Dem and current borough mayor Beth Rowland. Newcomer Carol Ann Jewell took third with 1,065 … nine votes ahead of Conservative James Bourke.
Nigel Harman’s 1,008 votes meant he was close.
The tight result will mean both parties will see this as a battleground in 2026.
Spencers Wood and Swallowfield
This new seat takes parts of Shinfield parish and makes them their own seat. As a completely new one, it was hard to predict how it would go, especially as it is a mixture of rural areas and new housing.
In the end, Catherine Glover topped the poll for the Lib Dems with 1,189 votes, while David Edmonds won 1,103 and finally got elected after several attempts.
Veteran councillor Stuart Munro’s 1,077 votes saw him take third place for the Conservatives, and was 30 votes ahead of fourth placed Anthony Pollock, who was also standing for the blue time.
But it was close: Chris Johnson loses his seat in the council chamber. The Lib Dem’s 1,020 votes was only 27 away from Pollock’s fourth place and 57 from winning third.
The Green party came ahead of Labour, whose three candidates all took the wooden spoon.
Thames ward
The Conservatives took the top two spots, and the Lib Dems came third.
Sam Akhtar, who previously represented Charvil, topped the vote with 1,416, while former Hurst councillor Wayne Smith had 1,284.
It was newcomer Katrin Harding who polled 1,217 – enough to pip Conservative Michael Firmager to a post. This is not the first time the veteran councillor lost ground to the opposition: he lost in Hawkedon in 2018 to Lib Dem David Hare.
He had 1,186 votes, just ahead of Lib Dems Yonni Wilson (1,152) and the wonderfully named Paddy Power (1,027).
Labour were a distant third here.
The result means everything will be to play for in the 2026 local elections.
Twyford, Ruscombe and Hurst ward
This new ward combined a Lib Dem stronghold with a Conservative one, but the result was never in doubt: the council leader’s popularlity mean he stormed ahead with one of the biggest shares of the vote on the night.
His 2,456 votes was the largest in the entire borough, and nearly four times that of fourth placed Conservative candidate and former Twyford councillor John Jarvis.
As fellow Twyford councillor Linsday Ferris stepped down, Cllr Conway’s fellow councillors are newcomers: Martin Alder and Martijn Andrea.
Merv Boniface, representing the Greens, came ahead of Labour.
Wescott
Labour leader Andy Croy opted to move to Wescott when the new boundaries were revealed. It was a decision that didn’t pay off, despite months of hard work including cleaning graffiti around Wokingham town centre.
His 661 votes was 130 behind his nearest Conservative challenger, pushing him in to seventh place.
For a while, both Conservatives and Lib Dems were considering their chances at winning the three seats. In the end, it was a royal flush for the Lib Dems, with Jane Ainslie being joined by Wokingham Town mayor elect Rob Comber, and Chris Cooke, consort of current Wokingham town mayor.
The victory means the party beat former Conservative executive member Gregor Murray, who was hoping to return to the chamber. He was just 26 votes away from third place, meaning this could be a ward to watch in 2026.
Winnersh
Winnersh is a Lib Dem stronghold, and so it proved as once again all three seats stayed under their control.
Deputy leader of the council, Prue Bray, topped the poll with 1,703 votes. That was 230 ahead of Rachelle Shepherd-Dubey on 1,473, and 1,460 saw Paul Fishwick in third place.
This was nearly double that of fourth placed Anne Chadwick for the Conservatives, on 755.
Labour didn’t take the wooden spoon here: TUSC’s John Gillman had just 83 votes.
Wokingham Without
This used to be a Conservative stronghold, but that is no longer the case.
Sitting Conservative David Davies lost his seat … and you could argue it was to a member of his own party, as Seona Turtle took third place with 1,117 votes, ahead of David’s 1,082.
Former Bracknell Forest Council Conservative Marc Brunel-Walker switched to the Lib Dems last year, and stormed to first place on his first time out for his new party. His 1,267 votes just beat Jordan Montgomery’s 1,256: the Lib Dem was elected last year, and retains his seat.
Chris Salmon, a third Lib Dem, was fifth with 977 votes. That was head of Conservative Ullakarin Clark who had 958.
Labour’s candidates all failed to get under 200 votes.
