Brighton and Hove City Council is a unitary authority in East Sussex, England. It was created as Brighton and Hove Borough Council on 1 April 1997 replacing Brighton and Hove Borough Councils. It was granted city status in 2001.
See Brighton Borough Council elections or Hove Borough Council elections for election prior to 1996
| Year | Conservative | Green | Labour | Liberal Democrats | Independent | |||||
| 2023 | 6 | 7 | 38 | 0 | 3 | |||||
| 2019 | 14 | 19 | 20 | 0 | 1 | |||||
| 2015 | 20 | 11 | 23 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 2011 | 18 | 23 | 13 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| 2007 | 26 | 12 | 13 | 2 | 1 | |||||
| 2003 | 20 | 6 | 24 | 3 | 1 | |||||
| 1999 | 27 | 3 | 45 | 3 | 0 | |||||
| 1996 | 23 | 1 | 54 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| Party | Seats | Council Composition May 2023 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 1999 | 2003 | 2007 | 2011 | 2015 | 2019 | 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Green | 1 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 23 | 11 | 19 | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Conservative | 23 | 27 | 20 | 26 | 18 | 20 | 14 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Labour | 54 | 45 | 24 | 13 | 13 | 23 | 20 | 38 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Liberal Democrats | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brighton and Hove Independents | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
For the first election in 1996 the wards of the former Borough of Brighton and Borough of Hove were used. There were originally 26 wards each with three councillors each, totalling 78 councillors in the newly created Brighton and Hove Borough Council:
The 2001 boundary review[6] [7] [8] reduced the wards to 21 wards with a mix of two or three councillors each totalling 54 councillors for the then city council. These boundary were used in the 2003 election for the first time with the following wards: Brunswick and Adelaide, Central Hove, East Brighton, Goldsmid, Hangleton and Knoll, Hanover and Elm Grove, Hollingbury and Stanmer (which then became Hollingdean and Stanmer in 2007), Stanford (which became Hove Park in 2007), Moulsecoomb and Bevendean, North Portslade, Patcham, Preston Park, Queen's Park, Regency, Rottingdean Coastal, South Portslade, St Peter's and North Laine, Westbourne, Wish, Withdean, Woodingdean.[9]
Ward boundaries were reviewed again in 2023, since when the council has comprised 54 councillors representing 23 wards, with each ward electing two or three councillors. Elections are held every four years. The wards are:[10]
| Election | Date | Incumbent party | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wish | 1 May 1997 | ||||
| Hollingbury | 24 July 1997 | ||||
| Portslade South | 7 May 1998 | ||||
| Rottingdean | 7 May 1998 | ||||
| Tenantry | 1 September 1999 | ||||
| Goldsmid | 7 June 2001 | ||||
| Patcham | 11 April 2002 | ||||
| Westdene | 16 May 2002 | ||||
| Hangleton and Knoll | 7 October 2004 | ||||
| Regency | 13 December 2007 | ||||
| Goldsmid | 23 July 2009 | ||||
| St Peter's and North Laine | 8 July 2010 | ||||
| Westbourne | 22 December 2011 | ||||
| East Brighton | 18 October 2012 | ||||
| Hanover and Elm Grove | 11 July 2013 | ||||
| East Brighton | 4 August 2016 | ||||
| East Brighton | 8 February 2018 | ||||
| Hollingdean and Stanmer | 6 May 2021 | ||||
| Patcham | 6 May 2021 | ||||
| Rottingdean Coastal | 5 May 2022 | ||||
| Wish | 8 December 2022 | ||||
| South Portslade | 11 January 2024 | ||||
| Queen’s Park | 2 May 2024 | ||||
| Kemptown | 2 May 2024 | ||||