| Election Name: | 2021 Durham County Council election |
| Country: | England |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Ongoing: | no |
| Previous Election: | 2017 Durham County Council election |
| Previous Year: | 2017 |
| Next Election: | 2025 Durham County Council election |
| Next Year: | 2025 |
| Seats For Election: | All 126 council division seats |
| Majority Seats: | 64 |
| Election Date: | 6 May 2021 |
| Turnout: | 36.35% (5.1 pp) |
| Party1: | Labour Party (UK) |
| Last Election1: | 74 seats, 42% |
| Seats1: | 53 |
| Seat Change1: | 21 |
| Popular Vote1: | 101,939 |
| Percentage1: | 37.8% |
| Swing1: | 4.6% |
| Party2: | Conservative Party (UK) |
| Last Election2: | 10 seats, 15% |
| Seats2: | 24 |
| Seat Change2: | 14 |
| Popular Vote2: | 74,862 |
| Percentage2: | 27.8% |
| Swing2: | 12.8% |
| Party3: | Independent (politician) |
| Last Election3: | 13 seats, 16% |
| Seats3: | 22 |
| Seat Change3: | 9 |
| Popular Vote3: | 38,499 |
| Percentage3: | 14.3% |
| Swing3: | 2.1% |
| Party4: | Liberal Democrats (UK) |
| Last Election4: | 14 seats, 13% |
| Seats4: | 17 |
| Seat Change4: | 3 |
| Popular Vote4: | 34,887 |
| Percentage4: | 12.9% |
| Swing4: | 0.4% |
| Party5: | Derwentside Independents |
| Colour5: | 990099 |
| Last Election5: | 7 seats, 6% |
| Seats5: | 5 |
| Seat Change5: | 2 |
| Popular Vote5: | 7,301 |
| Percentage5: | 2.7% |
| Swing5: | 3.1% |
| Party6: | North East Party |
| Colour6: | 800000 |
| Last Election6: | 3 seats, 2% |
| Seats6: | 4 |
| Seat Change6: | 1 |
| Popular Vote6: | 3,947 |
| Percentage6: | 1.5% |
| Swing6: | 0.7% |
| Party7: | Green Party of England and Wales |
| Last Election7: | 0 seats, 2% |
| Seats7: | 1 |
| Seat Change7: | 1 |
| Popular Vote7: | 6,550 |
| Percentage7: | 2.4% |
| Swing7: | 0.1% |
| Map Size: | 300px |
| Council control | |
| Posttitle: | Council control after election |
| Before Election: | Labour |
| After Election: | Liberal Democrat and Conservative coalition |
The 2021 Durham County Council election was held on 6 May 2021 as part of the 2021 local elections in the United Kingdom.
All 126 councillors were to be elected. The county is divided into 63 electoral divisions (called "wards") with each electing between 1 and 3 councillors by the first-past-the-post voting method for a fixed four-year term.
The result saw the Labour Party retain its position as the largest party but lose control of the council. It marked the first time since 1919 that the council (and its predecessors) had not been controlled by Labour.
Another notable result was the Green Party of England and Wales gaining their first seat on the Council in the Brandon division, gaining one seat from Labour.
The council convened in its Annual Meeting on 26 May, where a coalition of the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, North East Party, and independents formed the Cabinet and elected Amanda Hopgood of the Liberal Democrats as Leader of the Council; the first woman to hold the position.
|-|| Seaham Community Party| align="right" |0| align="right" |0| align="right" |0| align="right" |-| align="right" |0.0| align="right" |1.1| align="right" |3,091| align="right" |-0.2|-|-|| Political Unity for Progress| align="right" |0| align="right" |0| align="right" |0| align="right" |-| align="right" |0.0| align="right" |0.6| align="right" |1,512| align="right" |+0.6|-|-|| Spennymoor Independents| align="right" |0| align="right" |0| align="right" |5| align="right" |-5| align="right" |0.0| align="right" |0.0| align="right" |0| align="right" |-1.6|-|}
The by-election was triggered by the death of Independent Cllr Brian Avery in October 2021,[1] who represented the ward since the 2013 elections, having been previously elected to represent Chilton as a Labour candidate in 2008.
Conservative candidate David Farry last contested the ward as an Independent candidate in 2017, having previously been elected a councillor for the ward in 2008 but defeated in 2013 as a F.A.I.R. candidate. Independent Joe Makepeace represented the ward from 2017 until 2021, when he failed to be re-elected to his seat.
The Horden by-election was triggered by the death of Labour councillor Isabella Roberts.[2]