Reform UK has taken Harraby South from Labour after Josh Kirkwood won Thursday's Cumberland Council by-election in Carlisle.
Kirkwood received 560 votes, finishing 91 ahead of Labour's Ruth Alcroft on 469. Reform secured 42.5 per cent of the valid vote, while Labour finished on 35.6 per cent.
Harraby South result in full
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
| Josh Kirkwood | Reform UK | 560 | 42.5% |
| Ruth Elizabeth Alcroft | Labour | 469 | 35.6% |
| Rob Currie | Conservative | 236 | 17.9% |
| Rose-Ellen Kemp | Green | 29 | 2.2% |
| Stuart Kelly | Liberal Democrats | 23 | 1.7% |
Cumberland Council reported turnout of 27.89 per cent. The electorate was 4,733, with 1,320 ballot papers issued and three rejected.
Reform gain from Labour
The by-election was called after Labour councillor Lucy Patrick resigned in July. Patrick had won Harraby South at the inaugural Cumberland Council election in May 2022, receiving 634 votes against 547 for the Conservatives and 369 for an Independent candidate.
That earlier contest gave Labour a majority of 87. Reform UK did not field a candidate in the ward in 2022, but has now won it with a majority of 91.
Turnout fell from 35.3 per cent in 2022 to 27.89 per cent at the by-election. Labour's total was 165 votes lower than at the previous contest, while the Conservative vote fell from 547 to 236.
Because Reform did not contest Harraby South in 2022, a conventional two-party swing cannot be calculated directly. The result is nonetheless a clear Reform gain from Labour and gives the party representation in the ward for the first time since Cumberland Council was created.
A mixed night for Reform
The Carlisle victory completed a mixed evening for Reform UK. The party gained Harraby South from Labour, but lost Penistone East to Labour and St Neots Eynesbury to the Liberal Democrats.
The three results underline how local circumstances, candidate changes and turnout can produce sharply different outcomes on the same night. Harraby South was Reform's success, while the party was unable to retain two seats elsewhere that had become vacant following councillor resignations.