These opinion pieces are published as part of our coverage of the 2026 local elections. We invited representatives from different political parties to make their case directly to readers. The views expressed are those of the authors and do not reflect the position of East Anglia Bylines.
Sandy Martin is a Suffolk county councillor and Labour group leader
On Thursday 7 May, voters will elect their county councils, and a third of their local councillors in some towns and cities. These elections are for councillors who will only be in place for two years, until the new unitary authorities take over in May 2028, but people should be in no doubt of their importance. The effectiveness of the transition will depend on having sensible, experienced councillors in place to help guide the process.
Most polling organisations predict that Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex will be taken over by Reform UK with sizeable majorities, elected on less than a third of the vote. There have been reports of Reform UK rallies using ‘sign-up’ desks to recruit people as candidates with no proper scrutiny of their credentials to be acceptable councillors. But whether or not that’s true, the majority of Reform UK candidates have no experience of public service at all. We have seen the consequences of councils run by people with no understanding of the realities of local government in Kent, Worcestershire and elsewhere.
Reform’s popularity is beginning to wear off, but they still have more people saying they will vote for them than for any other party. The upside is that there are far more people who are horrified by them than there are who support them. But those people are split as to who to vote for. Unless people guess well, their votes are likely to be wasted. Different parties have different chances depending on the location. In most urban areas, it is Labour candidates who are most likely to see off Reform UK.
There are good positive reasons for voting Labour. Most Labour candidates in winnable wards already have local government experience. Labour councils have put more support into public services, have spent their limited resources on making their communities fairer and more cooperative, and have managed their councils within their financial means. Labour aims to tackle the causes of problems rather than just trying to clear up the symptoms – for instance, providing housing advice and help, support for children and young people, and direct employment opportunities, rather than just dealing with the consequences of unemployment and homelessness.
In Ipswich, the need for a northern bypass becomes more obvious day by day, and only Labour councillors are unanimous in support. We need to transition to renewable energy, not stick our heels in and refuse all change. The state of our roads is intolerable – the government is putting serious money in, but it needs good local councillors to oversee that spend. Children with special educational needs have been let down for far too long – Labour councillors will cooperate with the government’s new preventative approach, helping to get the support children and families need before their problems become insurmountable.
Obviously, I believe we will all be very much better off without Reform UK being in control, but even if they are, it is important to have responsible, effective and experienced councillors in place who will work with the Labour government and our MPs to help guide the transition to the new unitaries.
In short – if you don’t want a local Reform UK councillor as part of a Reform UK-controlled council, you need to ask yourself whether you can afford to cast a ‘protest vote’ against the government, or whether you should vote for a candidate who will do their best for the local area and who has a chance of winning. In Ipswich, Norwich, Colchester and other towns, that is most likely to be a Labour candidate.
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