The local elections on May 4 will allow voters in South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse to decide who they want on their district councils for the next four years.  

The elections are significant as the councils will decide over key local issues such as contentious planning decisions, parks and rubbish collection.

They will also reflect the national mood of voters going into the General Election, which is expected next year.

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Following the last local election in 2019, the Liberal Democrats became the most dominant party across South Oxfordshire and Vale district councils.

The party has a huge majority in the Vale, holding 30 of the 38 seats available, and has led South Oxfordshire for the last four years in coalition with the Green Party.

Prior to 2019, the Conservatives had been in power in the Vale for eight years and in South Oxfordshire for 12 years.

Leader of the Vale council Bethia Thomas said the Lib Dems had put the climate at the heart of its decision making and would do the same if it was re-elected.

Her South Oxfordshire counterpart David Rouane said his coalition council had not achieved all that it wanted but he was still proud of what it had done.

This included balancing a budget deficit that was £3 million a year in 2019 and setting up a community hub during the covid pandemic.

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The Greens had never had a councillor on South Oxfordshire District Council before the 2019 election but surged into power as part of a ‘green wave’ across the country.

The party campaigned on the basis of scrapping the Conservative’s Local Plan 2035 because of concerns over its environmental impact. 

Although the Greens were unable to scrap the plans when in power, councillors were able to introduce high standards for developers in relation to low-carbon building.

The biggest challengers to the Lib Dems and Greens will be the Conservatives, a party looking to return to power from the political wilderness.

Its chances could be affected by the party’s national reputation however - languishing at just 26 per cent in the national polls.

But Tory councillors Ian Snowdon (Didcot West in South Oxfordshire) and Ben Mabbett (Grove North Ward in the Vale) believe the party stands a good chance of returning to power in both districts.

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The party has campaigned on a basis of being tough against developers and to improve health facilities.

Labour, despite standing at 49 per cent in the national polls, hold few seats in the current councils and are not standing candidates in certain seats at this election.

A source in the party said one of the reasons was that both South Oxfordshire and the Vale were typically conservative voting.

They said: “If you put a blue sticker on a donkey here it stands a good chance of winning.”