Party members react to Lib Dems' historic win in Richmond borough
By Tilly O'Brien 8th May 2026
Results for the 2026 Richmond borough local elections have been declared with the Liberal Democrats winning all 54 seats.
The Lib Dems took control of Richmond Council for the 12th year running after the results were announced in the early hours of Friday, 8 May.
In a historic election, the Lib Dems gained the remaining five seats which were previously controlled by the Greens.
Speaking about the win, Lib Dem councillor, Cllr Gareth Roberts told Nub News: "[Winning] all 54 seats was beyond our wildest dreams. We never thought we would be able to take every single seat.
"We thought we would come close for every single seat is absolutely amazing. It's down to the hard work of the teams, the agents, all of the campaigners and of course it's down to the voters who out their trust overwhelmingly in the Lib Dems.
"I'd like to thank them and of course everybody who took part in the elections."
He continued: "It's another four years of Lib Dem control, but there's another four years of governing for every Richmond resident not just those who voted for us. We want to hear from everybody and I can give every resident cast iron reassurance that we will govern for everybody.
"We will listen. We will not allow 54 seats become a one party state. We want to hear dissenting voices and we will encourage dissenting voices within the group."
Reacting to his party's defeat, Councillor Chas Warlow from the Green Party (former opposition party), said: "We knew we were up against it. You know the previous two elections in this borough have been under an agreement with the Liberal Democrats that helped us to get councils elected and it kind of mimicked a bit of proportional representation in that sense.
"But we don't have that arrangement anymore, so of course, it's going to be much more difficult to get any councillors elected. We wanted to get councillors elected but we were up against it.
"I think our campaign was fantastic. It encouraged a lot more people to be interested in the Green Party for not just th stereotypical idea of what we stand for but also why the societal and economic issues like affordability. There's a crisis in this country and whether people are prepared to face up to it.
"So, I think that we have had a reasonable share of the vote for the first time ever in this borough, we've stood 54 candidates across the borough, so in that sense, we are a coming force. We are not going away."
Cllr Warlow said it is going to "take a lot of hard work" to build a Green stronghold in the borough. He added that the Green's stand for "integrity" and "honesty".
"We are the people who can hold the Liberal Democrats to account and make sure they act transparently as they have failed to do on many occassions," he said.
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