Lancashire goes to the polls next month in an all-out county council election, with every seat in the authority up for grabs.

The local elections will be an interesting checking-in point on how public opinion towards the Labour government is faring almost a year on from their barnstorming victory at the General Election.

The Conservatives – who took a pummelling at last year’s polls – are seeking to retain control of the county authority, hoping to stave off Labour and the rise of the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK to maintain its slim but decisive majority.

It holds 46 seats in the county – with 43 needed for a majority – and will be hoping to hang on despite the national party’s rudderless progress since its general election hammering last July.

The most eye-catching storylines ahead of May’s vote are the number of big name defections from the Conservatives to Reform, with some politicians seemingly seeing their political views better reflected by Nigel Farage’s party – or sensing a changing political current and hoping to ride the crest of a wave to keep their jobs.

Ex-Ribble Valley Council leader Stephen Atkinson and veteran councillor Ged Mirfin are the most high-profile to have made the switch, while the son of ex-Hyndburn Labour-turned-Independent leader Miles Parkinson, Lance, is gunning to take his first step into politics.

Elsewhere, the fallout ex-Labour men Mohammed Iqbal, who quit the party over its supposed stance on Gaza, and Azhar Ali – kicked out of the party for alleged antisemitism – aim to keep their seats as independents, and ex-Hyndburn MP Graham Jones – himself suspended for a time over offensive remarks about Israel – aims to make his latest political comeback for Labour.

There are no other elections across East Lancashire in May – with 2025 being the fallow year of the electoral cycle.

Full list of candidates in Lancashire County Council elections

Burnley

Burnley Central East

Simon Bonney (Conservatives), Rayyan Fiass (Workers Party of Britain), Alex Hall (Green Party), Maheen Kamran (Independent), Javad Mokhammad (Ind), Gavin Theaker (Reform UK), Hannah Till (Labour).

Burnley Central West

Frank Bartram (Liberal Democrats), Martyn Hurt (Green), Dylan Manning (Lab), Liam Thomson (Reform), Don Whitaker (Con).

Burnley North East

Usman Arif (Ind), Jim Halstead (Reform), Julie Hurt (Green), Susan Nutter (Con), Cheryl Semple (Lab).

Burnley Rural

Gordon Birtwistle (Lib Dem), Gemma Haigh (Lab), Jack Launer (Green), Mark Poulton (Reform), Cosima Towneley (Con).

Burnley South West

Jane Curran (Green), Eddie Kutavicius (Reform), Neil Mottershead (Con), Jeff Sumner (Lib Dem), Daniel Tierney (Lab).

Padiham and Burnley West

Daniel Armitage (Lab), Janet Hall (Green), Alan Hosker (Con), Thomas Pickup (Reform), Melissa Semmens (Ind).

Chorley

Chorley Central

Michaela Cmorej (Reform), Debbie Brotherton (Green), Jennifer Hurley (Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition), Peter Malpas (Con), Chris Snow (Lab).

Chorley North

Anne Calderbank (Green), Sam Chapman (Con), Moira Crawford (Ind), Hasina Khan (Lab), Aamir Khansaheb (TUSC), Martin Topp (Reform)

Chorley Rural East

Sue Baines (Con), Simon Cash (Green), David Golden (Lib Dem), Greg Heath (Reform), Kim Snape (Lab).

Chorley Rural West

Sef Churchill (Green), Braeden Irvine (Con), Rowan Power (Lib Dem), Mark Wade (Reform), Alan Whittaker (Lab).

Chorley South

Julia Berry (Lab), Olga Cash (Green), Zoe Curtis (Lib Dem), Lee Hutchinson (Reform), Christine Turner (Con).

Clayton with Whittle

Mark Clifford (Lab), Amy Coxley (Green), George Ikin (Reform), Greg Morgan (Con), Gail Ormston (Lib Dem), Carole Sasaki (TUSC).

Euxton, Buckshaw and Astley

Jonathan Close (Reform), Mark Frost (Lib Dem), Jacob Neal (TUSC), Aidy Riggott (Con), Gillian Sharples (Lab), Pauline Summers (Green).

Hoghton with Wheelton

John Clemson (Reform), Alan Cullens (Con), Penelope Dawber (TUSC), Stephen Fenn (Lib Dem), Mike Graham (Lab), Jon Royle (Green).

Fylde

Fylde East

Peter Collins (Ind), Phil Glaysher (Lab), Edward Oldfield (Ind), Joshua Roberts (Reform), Tony Wellings (Con), Brenden Wilkinson (Green).

Fylde South

David Dwyer (Reform), Noreen Griffiths (Ind), Sandra Pitman (Con), Jed Sullivan (Lab), Jayne Walsh (Green).

Fylde West

Mark Qualter (Reform), John Singleton (Con), Natalya Stone (Lab), Peter Walsh (Green).

Lytham

Tim Ashton (Con), Mark Bamforth (Ind), Robin Darling (Green), Christine Marshall (Lib Dem), Alan Norris (Lab), David Green (Reform), Carole Harrison (Ind).

St Annes North

Peter Buckley (Con), Debra Challinor (Reform), Peter Cranie (Green), Joanne Gardner (Lib Dem), Valerie Lewis-Williams (Alliance for Democracy and Freedom), Peter Tavernor (Lab).

St Annes South

Maria Deery (Green), Viki Miller (Lab), Cheryl Morrison (ADF), Stephen Phillips (Lib Dem), Steve Rigby (Con), Gus Scott (Reform).

Hyndburn

Accrington North

Shahed Mahmood (Con), Clare Pritchard (Lab), Julie Stubbins (Green), Joel Tetlow (Reform).

Accrington South

David Heap (Con), Graham Jones (Lab), Ashley Joynes (Reform), Charlie Kerans (Green).

Accrington West and Oswaldtwistle Central

Sohail Asghar (Green), Isaac Cowans (Reform), Munsif Dad (Lab), Mohammed Younis (Con).

Great Harwood, Rishton and Clayton-le-Moors

Noordad Aziz (Lab), Wayne Fitzharris (Green), Jordan Fox (Reform), Carole Haythornthwaite (Con), Andy Hunter-Rossall (Green), Zak Khan (Con), Lance Parkinson (Reform), Kate Walsh (Lab).

Oswaldtwistle

Peter Britcliffe (Con), Gaynor Hargreaves (Reform), Nancy Mills (Green), Caitlin Pritchard (Lab).

Lancaster

Heysham

Graeme Austin (Reform), Sheldon Kent (Lib Dem), Catherine Potter (Lab), George Thomson (Green), Andrew Gardiner (Con).

Lancaster Central

Gina Dowding (Green), Thomas Inman (Con), Derek Kaye (Lib Dem), Rob Kelly (Reform), Fran Wild (Lab).

Lancaster East

Sam Charlesworth (Lab), Phil Dunster (Lib Dem), Connor Winter (Con), Paul Stubbins (Green), Michael Kershaw (Reform).

Lancaster Rural East

Shaun Crimmins (Reform), Geoff Eales (Lab), Peter Jackson (Lib Dem), Sally Maddocks (Green), Matthew Maxwell-Scott (Con).

Lancaster Rural North

Graham Dalton (Reform), Alan Greenwell (Lib Dem), Sonny Remmer-Riley (Lab), Sue Tyldesley (Green), Phillippa Williamson (Con).

Lancaster South East

Lee Garner (Reform), Daniel Kirk (Con), Erica Lewis (Lab), Malcom Martin (Lib Dem), Hamish Mills (Green).

Morecambe Central

Connor Graham (Con), Paul Hart (Lib Dem), Gary Kniveton (Reform), Patrick McMurray (Green), Margaret Pattison (Lab).

Morecambe North

Sara-Louise Dobson (Green), Stuart Morris (Con), Jackson Stubbs (Lab), James Pilling (Lib Dem), Russell Walsh (Reform).

Morecambe South

Keith Budden (Con), Melanie  Forrest (Green), Martin Gawith (Lab), Bill Jackson (Lib Dem), Brian Moore (Reform).

Skerton

Charles Edwards (Con), James Harvey (Lib Dem), Andrew Otway (Green), Hilda Parr (Lab), Martyn Sutton (Reform).

Pendle

Brierfield and Nelson West

Irfan Ayub (Con), Karl Barnsley (Lab), Scott Cunliffe (Green), Mohammed Iqbal (Ind), Susan Land (Lib Dem), Christine Stables (Reform).

Nelson East

Azhar Ali (Ind), Mohammed Aslam (Con), Lee Beswick (UK Independence Party), Vanessa Robinson (Reform), Nicki Shepherd (Lab), Mary Thomas (Lib Dem), Rebecca Willmott (Green).

Pendle Central

Marion Atkinson (Reform), Andy Bell (Lib Dem), Benjamin Harrop (Green), Philip Heyworth (Lab), Ash Sutcliffe (Con).

Pendle Hill

Mark Dawson (Lab), Howard Hartley (Con), Annette Marti (Green), John Metcalfe (Reform), Brian Newman (Lib Dem).

Pendle Rural

Euan Clouston (Lab), Victoria Fletcher (Reform), Sylvia Godfrey (Green), Lynn Hannon (Lab), David Hartley (Lib Dem), Nathan McCollum (Reform), Jane Pratt (Con), Jenny Purcell (Con), David Whipp (Lib Dem), Jane Wood (Green).

Preston

Preston Central East

Frank de Molfetta (Lab), Darrin Greggans (Reform), Al-Yasa Khan (Con), George Kulbacki (Lib Dem), Michael Lavalette (Ind), Callum Taylor (Green).

Preston Central West

Matthew Brown (Lab), Joe Custodio (Reform), Frankie Kennedy (Con), Mike Peak (Lib Dem), Jennifer Robinson (Green).

Preston City

Connor Dwyer (Lab), Holly Harrison (Green), Tayo Korede (Con), Yousuf Motala (Ind), Scott Pye (Reform), Julie van Mierlo (Lib Dem).

Preston East

Edward Craven (Lib Dem), Geoffrey Fielden (TUSC), Anna Hindle (Lab), Luke Parker (Reform), John Ross (Green), Keith Sedgewick (Con).

Preston North

Qasim Ajmi (Ind), Fiona Duke (Lib Dem), Maxwell Green (Con), Charles Parkinson (Green), Alex Sharples (Reform), Samir Vohra (Lab).

Preston Rural

Millie Barber (Green), Daniel Guise (Lib Dem), Maria Jones (Reform), Sue Whittam (Con), Valerie Wise (Lab).

Preston South East

Jenny Mein (Lab), Andy Pratt (Con), Almas Razakazi (Ind), John Rutter (Lib Dem), Marion Seed (Green), Nigel Wilson (Reform).

Preston South West

Kevin Brockbank (Con), Laura Dalton (Green), Mark Jewell (Lib Dem), Nweeda Khan (Lab), Emma Mead (Ind), Lee Slater (Reform).

Preston West

Trevor Hart (Con), Michael McGowan (Lab), John Potter (Lib Dem), Jemma Rushe (Reform), Dan Thompson (Green).

Ribble Valley

Clitheroe

Ian Brown (Ind), Warren Goldsworthy (Reform), Sue Hind (Con), Simon O’Rourke (Lib Dem), Anne Peplow (Green), Michael Graveston (Lab).

Longridge with Bowland

Ian Duxbury (Reform), Stuart Hirst (Con), Peter Lawrence (Lib Dem), Adam McMeekin (Green), Kieren Spencer (Lab), Robert Walker (Ind).

Ribble Valley North East

David Berryman (Con), David Birtwhistle (Ind), Ged Mirfin (Reform), Malcolm Peplow (Green), Stephen Sutcliffe (Lib Dem), Mike Willcox (Lab).

Ribble Valley South West

Stephen Atkinson (Reform), John Fletcher (Ind), Richard Horton (Lab), Gaye McCrum (Green), Mary Robinson (Lib Dem), Alan Schofield (Con).

Rossendale

Mid Rossendale

Bob Bauld (Green), Clive Balchin (Reform), John Greenwood (Con), Sean Serridge (Lab).

Rossendale East

Mark Hillier (Lib Dem), Julie Adshead (Green), Jackie Oakes (Lab), Jenny Rigby (Con), Mackenzie Ritson (Reform).

Rossendale South

Joanne Ash (Reform), Simon Holland (Con), Liz McInnes (Lab), John Payne (Green).

Rossendale West

Samara Barnes (Lab), Margaret Pendlebury (Con), Jamie Rippingale (Reform), Jacob Rorke (Green).

Whitworth & Bacup

Vivienne Hall (Green), Michelle Smith (Lab), Daniel Matchett (Reform), Scott Smith (Con).

South Ribble

Leyland Central

Mary Green (Con), Arif Khansaheb (TUSC), Alan Swindells (Lib Dem), Matthew Tomlinson (Lab), Hannah Whalley (Reform), Emma Winterleigh (Green).

Leyland South

Ellie Close (Reform), Tahir Khansaheb (TUSC), Stephen McHugh (Lib Dem), Jayne Rear (Con), Wes Roberts (Lab), Ceri Turner (Green).

Lostock Hall and Bamber Bridge

Jeff Couperthwaite (Con), Simon Gummer (Reform), Clare Hunter (Lab), Samuel Winterleigh (Green), Tim Young (Lib Dem).

Moss Side and Farington

Andy Blake (Reform), Michael Green (Con), Anthony Sims (Green), Graham Smith (Lib Dem), Paul Wharton-Hardman (Lab).

Penwortham East and Walton-le-Dale

Sue Broady (Green), Joan Burrows (Con), Clare Burton-Johnson (Lib Dem), Lorenzo More (Reform), Elaine Stringfellow (Lab).

Penwortham West

Wayne Griffiths (Reform), David Howarth (Lib Dem), Heike McMurray (Green), Ian Watkinson (Lab), Paul Watson (Con).

South Ribble East

Fred Cottam (Reform), Clare Hales (Green), Chris Lomax (Lab), Paul Valentine (Lib Dem), Barrie Yates (Con).

South Ribble West

James Gleeson (Lab), Tom Lord (Reform), Angela Turner (Lib Dem), Gareth Watson (Con), Christine Winter (Green).

West Lancashire

Burscough and Rufford

Gareth Dowling (Lab), Richard Edwards (Reform), Neil Pollington (Lib Dem), Eddie Pope (Con), Jeanette Rimmer (Green).

Ormskirk

Paul Hamby (Green), Nikki Hennessy (Lab), Gordon Johnson (Our West Lancashire), Paul Greenall (Reform), Bruce Porteous (Con).

Skelmersdale Central

Terence Aldridge (Lab), Susan Brake (Con), Simon Evans (Reform), Neil Jackson (Green), Vincent Lucker (Lib Dem).

Skelmersdale East

John Fillis (Lab), Paul French (Green), Julie Peel (Con), Neil Pye (OWL), Nigel Swales (Reform).

Skelmersdale West

Tom Marsh-Pritchard (OWL), Edwin Black (Green), Peter Chandler (Lib Dem), Julie Gibson (Lab), Ella Worthington (Reform), Ruth Melling (Con).

West Lancashire East

Robert Bailey (Con), Richard Taylor (Green), Damian Owen (Lab), Ellis Newton (Reform), Adrian Owens (OWL).

West Lancashire North

Anne Fennell (Lab), Thomas de Freitas (Con), Mike Harris (Reform), Charlotte Houltram (Green), Tina Stringfellow (Lib Dem).

West Lancashire West

Leon Graham (Reform), Paul Hennessy (Lab), Ben Lowe (Green), Ruxandra Trandafoiu (Lib Dem), David Westley (Con).

Wyre

Cleveleys East

Sarah Punshon (Green), James Crawford (Reform), Andrea Kay (Con), Harry Swatton (Lab).

Cleveleys South and Carleton

Luke Meeks (Green), Ian Northwood (Con), Rebecca Potter (Lib Dem), Jan Schofield (Reform), Peter Wright (Lab).

Fleetwood East

Daniel Bye (Green, Sandra Finch (Lib Dem), JJ Fitzgerald (Con), David Shaw (Reform), Victoria Wells (Lab).

Fleetwood West and Cleveleys West

Mary Belshaw (Lab), Stephen Clarke (Con), Georgia Everill (Green), Alice Jones (Reform), Joanne Joyner (Lib Dem).

Poulton le Fylde

Alf Clempson (Con), Barbara Mead-Mason (Green), Cheryl Raynor (Lab), Paul Ellison (Reform), Jayden Gaskin (Ind), Sean Little (Lib Dem).

Thornton and Hambleton

Nigel Alderson (Reform), Jeremy Dable (Lib Dem), James Mason (Lab), Monique Rembowski (Green), John Shedwick (Con).

Wyre Rural Central

Tom Briggs (Green), Sarah Collinge (Ind), Paul Fairhurst (Con), John Moore (Lab), Matthew Salter (Reform), Rene van Mierlo (Lib Dem).

Wyre Rural East

Oliver Bonser (Lab), Neil Darby (Lib Dem), Caroline Montague (Green), James Tomlinson (Reform), Shaun Turner (Con).

The Lancashire County Council elections will take place on Thursday, May 1.

People aged 18 and over have until Friday, April 11, to register to vote, which can be done in five minutes on the Government website.

Postal vote applications close Monday, April 14, with the proxy vote - nominating a trusted person to vote on your behalf - deadline is Wednesday, April 23.

Photographic ID such as a driver's licence or passport is required to vote, the deadline to apply for a free voter authority certificate photo ID is 5pm on Wednesday, April 23. The full list of acceptable forms of ID can be found on the Government website.