Opinion, Watford Observer, 31 May 2026 Concerns grow after Lib Dems take all Watford seats | Watford Observer
The ‘none of the above’ parties did well in the local elections in Watford particularly the Greens whose share of the vote more than doubled at the expense of Labour.
All other parties had virtually the same share of the vote as last year, but the main local beneficiary of the collapse in support for the incompetent Labour government were the Liberal Democrats.
They have created a one-party state in Watford and this year they actually won every ward in the borough, taking 100% of the seats with less than half the votes in the town (45%).
Given their apparent commitment to proportional representation, you might think they’d be embarrassed….
They have used the largely unaccountable role of a directly elected Mayor (spending time on photo opportunities and self-promotion whilst the Chief Operating Officer actually runs the Borough) to maximise their vote.
He will no doubt be able to continue building more ‘Taylor Towers’, damaging local businesses, obstructing car drivers and charging the highest council tax in the County without any opposition.
However, perhaps not for long as attention will now turn to the local government reorganisation.
We are expecting an announcement for Hertfordshire next month of the replacement structure for the current two-level borough/county system in favour of a unitary authority.
If recent similar announcements elsewhere are anything to go by, this is likely to be a combination of Watford with South West Herts and Hertsmere (as ‘South Herts’), although it might possibly be Watford, South West Herts and some areas north of us to form a ‘West Herts’.
How can we best defend the interests of Watford’s different local communities in this new system?
Watford Conservatives will continue to argue for cross-party support for new local parish and town councils to defend local interests: local councils to fight to defend our local environment in communities such as Oxhey, Garston, Nascot Park and central Watford are now needed more than ever.
Stephen Woodard
Chairman, Watford Conservatives
