'If they can't elect a leader, what can they do?' - Kirklees residents say they are 'ready' for new leader
After an almost two-month-long stalemate, Kirklees residents say they have waited “long enough” for a decision.
Kirklees Council has so far remained without a leader for 50 days amidst an intense stalemate. After the all-out elections, which resulted in no overall control, two ballots – on May 20 and May 28, 2026 – ended most recently in a 29-29 tie between Green Party leader Andrew Cooper and Reform UK leader Sarah Wood.
A decision is supposed to be passed on July 15, but with no telling which way the voting will go, it appears the people of Kirklees are “fed up” with waiting for a choice.
Speaking to locals, some said they hadn’t really followed politics until Tuesday, June 7, when Nigel Farage – the leader of Reform UK – resigned.
80-year-old Rod Whitham explained that, until his resignation, he “tried not to talk politics,” but now it’s been on his mind a lot.
Rod said: “I was just talking about the resignation in the coffee shop. It’s all we can talk about now.”
When asked about his thoughts on Kirklees Council and Reform’s Coun Wood vying for the top spot on the council, Rod said: “I voted for Reform, so I am ready to see what they can do. There are lots of people with lots of ideas, so I want to know what they can do for Kirklees.”
On the contrary, Rod’s wife – 68-year-old Sue Witham – explained her fears over the lack of decision to elect a leader and how that looked for the party.
Sue said: “To be fair, if they can’t elect a leader – what are they going to be capable of?”
Other locals explained that they were becoming restless with the stalemate. One woman, who did not wish to be named, explained she had moved from Essex to Huddersfield several years ago and just wanted “to see” a decision made.
The woman said, “People are fed up… We have waited long enough for a leader, and now we just want to see one. We are just waiting now.”
While the day-to-day administration of Kirklees can be handled by council officers, their failure to appoint a leader has raised concerns from the CEO, the Mayor of West Yorkshire and an Ex-Mayor of Kirklees – all of whom have made public pleas with the council to make a decision.