| Election Name: | 1986 London local elections |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Turnout: | 45.5% |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 1982 London local elections |
| Previous Year: | 1982 |
| Next Election: | 1990 London local elections |
| Next Year: | 1990 |
| Seats For Election: | All 1,914 on all 32 London boroughs |
| Election Date: | 8 May 1986 |
| 1Blank: | Councils |
| 2Blank: | Councils +/– |
| 3Blank: | Councillors |
| 4Blank: | Councillors +/– |
| Party1: | Labour Party (UK) |
| Popular Vote1: | 842,489 |
| Percentage1: | 37.4% |
| Swing1: | 7.2% |
| 1Data1: | 15 |
| 2Data1: | 3 |
| 3Data1: | 957 |
| 4Data1: | 176 |
| Party2: | Conservative Party (UK) |
| Popular Vote2: | 798,398 |
| Percentage2: | 35.4% |
| Swing2: | 6.8% |
| 1Data2: | 11 |
| 2Data2: | 6 |
| 3Data2: | 685 |
| 4Data2: | 300 |
| Leader3: | David Steel (Lib.) David Owen (SDP) |
| Leader Since3: | 1976 (Steel), 1983 (Owen) |
| Colour3: | FFD700 |
| Party3: | SDP - Liberal Alliance |
| Popular Vote3: | 539,848 |
| Percentage3: | 24.0% |
| Swing3: | 0.6% |
| 1Data3: | 3 |
| 2Data3: | 3 |
| 3Data3: | 249 |
| 4Data3: | 125 |
| Map Size: | 400px |
Local government elections took place in London, and some other parts of the United Kingdom on Thursday 8 May 1986.
All London borough council seats were up for election. The previous Borough elections in London were in 1982.[1] The Labour Party won the most votes and seats in London for the first time since 1974. The party won the most seats in London in 7 out of the next 8 elections.
| Party[2] | Votes won | % votes | Change | Seats | % seats | Change | Councils | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 842,489 | 37.4 | +7.2 | 957 | 50.0 | +176 | 15 | +3 | |
| 798,398 | 35.4 | -6.8 | 684 | 35.7 | -300 | 11 | -6 | ||
| 539,848 | 24.0 | -0.6 | 249 | 13.0 | +125 | 3 | +3 | ||
| Others | 72,269 | 3.2 | +0.2 | 24 | 1.3 | -1 | 0 | ±0 | |
| n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 3 | ±0 | ||
|}