Voters are going to the polls across Wirral for a crunch set of elections.
This election will be the first time all 66 members of the council are standing at the same time. Previously elections were held every three out of four years electing one councillor in each ward at a time.
While Labour are still the largest party on the Wirral with 26 councillors, they haven’t held a majority since 2019. This means that at committees, where council decisions are made, they have to rely on votes from other parties to get things through.
The Conservatives are the largest opposition party with 22 councillors while the Greens and Liberal Democrats have nine and six members respectively.
In its bid to strengthen its grip on the council, Labour is targeting seats including Pensby and Thingwall, Bromborough, and Greasby, Frankby and Irby, but the party could face a strong challenge from the Green Party in Seacombe and Bebington.
However, Labour has already lost a seat in Rock Ferry after only putting forward two candidates there and faces challenges from two former Labour councillors. Karl Greaney is running as an independent in Leasowe and Moreton East while Yvonne Nolan is running in Rock Ferry.
To secure a majority, Labour will need to win at least eight seats on top of the number of councillors it already has but results could be far from straight forward.
