Risk Of Tory Mayor Defeats Raises The Heat On Rishi Sunak

The prospect of Conservative party mayors Andy Street and Ben Houchen losing their seats at the May local elections is the latest addition to a long list of Tory worries, with concern it could create a major flashpoint for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's fortunes.

The Tories are expected to suffer significant losses when local elections are held nationwide on Thursday 2 May as the party continues to trail Keir Starmer's Labour by large, double-digit margins in the opinion polls. Recent data suggests the gap between the two parties has grown this month.

The local authorities up for grabs in early May are particularly difficult for Prime Minister Sunak as they were last contested in 2021, when the Conservative party under former prime minister Boris Johnson was more popular with voters.

With polling day approaching, attention is starting to turn to how many council seats the Tories can expect to lose in what will be the last set of local elections before the next general election.

Conservative MPs now also believe the fate of Street and Houchen could also have a big impact on how Tory backbenchers respond to the results on the night.

Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street and Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen are popular figures among Conservatives and seen as the party's two strongest figures outside of Westminster.

Defeat for either of the pair, or even a large swing against them, would likely fuel concern among Tory MPs in their regions about what awaits them at the next general election, which must be called before the end of this year.

Tory backbenchers believe Houchen is likely to hold onto his seat given the scale of his victory at the 2021 mayoral election in Tees Valley. He defeated Labour's Jessie Joe Jacobs with 73 per cent