Bury Council announced that the elections in the Moorside ward, scheduled for May 7, will not proceed due to the death of Victor Hagan, who was set to represent Reform UK. The council ward election has been called off following the passing of one of the candidates. The election will be rescheduled at a later date, and when the date is confirmed, nominations for Reform UK candidates will reopen, while all previously nominated candidates will remain on the ballot.

This page provides official guidance and information on standing for election in England and Wales, including procedures if a candidate dies during the election period. The guidance explains that in local government elections, if a candidate dies before the poll, the election in that ward or division is generally countermanded or postponed and a new election is held, rather than the deceased candidate remaining on the ballot. (Translated summary from the Electoral Commission’s rules for local elections.)

Bury council, Greater Manchester; postponed from 7th May following the death of Reform UK candidate Victor Hagan. The May 2026 poll here had to be postponed after the Reform UK candidate Victor Hagan died during the campaign. All three Idle and Thackley ward councillors had been nominated for re-election, but Sunderland died in April during the election campaign and this poll had to be postponed in consequence.

The 2026 United Kingdom local elections were held on 7 May 2026. Several local council elections were postponed due to the death of a candidate, including: Moorside ward, Bury Council, death of candidate; Higham Ferrers ward, North Northamptonshire Council, death of candidate; Springfield ward, Essex County Council, death of candidate; St Helens Town Centre, 2026 St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council election, death of candidate; Hillingdon West ward, Hillingdon Council, death of candidate. These postponements occurred in line with electoral law, which requires the poll to be abandoned and rearranged when a candidate dies during the election period.

Under UK local election rules, if a candidate in a local council election dies after nominations close but before polling day, the poll in that electoral area is countermanded and must be re-run at a later date. In such circumstances, the deceased candidate’s name does not remain on a live ballot for the abandoned poll; instead, the election in that ward is postponed and a fresh poll is held, with parties able to nominate new candidates. This framework is distinct from rules for UK parliamentary elections, where a deceased candidate can remain on the ballot and, if elected, trigger a by-election.

The Electoral Commission’s general guidance on what happens if a candidate dies before polling day in local elections in England and Wales explains that the poll is typically countermanded or abandoned in that electoral area and a new election is arranged. The deceased candidate’s name does not remain on the ballot for the original poll; instead, the election itself is re-run with a new set of nominations. (Paraphrased from the Commission’s rules on death of a candidate at local government elections.)

Official results for the 2026 local elections in Waltham Forest list multiple Reform UK candidates and their vote totals, such as "Carol VICKERY – Reform UK – 181 votes" and "Matt DAVIS – Reform UK – 483 votes".[3] The document shows standard live candidate listings and does not indicate any deceased Reform UK candidates being kept on the ballot; all contests in the borough proceeded normally on 7 May.[3]

A statement of persons nominated for the 2026 local council elections in Hammersmith and Fulham lists candidates from various parties and confirms the number of councillors to be elected.[10] This statutory notice illustrates the formal process by which candidate lists are fixed before polling day and would be withdrawn or amended if a nominated candidate died and the poll was countermanded.[10]

The official Reform UK party website lists information about the party, its candidates and electoral performance, but does not provide any statement saying that deceased local council candidates remained on the ballot in the May 2026 local elections. There is no mention of two Reform local council candidates dying before election day and still appearing as candidates on the ballot.

The page explains general UK election procedures, noting that if an MP dies or retires, a by-election is held in that constituency to find a new MP for that area. While focused on parliamentary elections, it illustrates the principle that the death of an elected representative or candidate requires a new electoral process rather than allowing a deceased individual to serve. Local government electoral law uses a similar concept of abandoning and re-running contests when a candidate dies during the election campaign.

The site provides election candidate information for UK voters, listing upcoming elections and allowing users to search by postcode.[9] It reflects official nominations and ballot papers as supplied by local authorities.[9] While specific historical candidate lists for May 2026 are not directly quoted on the landing page, the service’s function is to show the names of candidates standing in each ward. In cases where an election is postponed because a candidate has died, the ballot for that ward does not proceed on the original date and those candidates would not appear as active choices for that poll.[9]

Post-election analysis of the 2026 local elections focuses on Reform UK’s surge in council seats and vote share. It describes the scale of Reform’s gains and public reaction, but does not report any instances of Reform UK local council candidates dying before polling day and still being on the ballot. Any references to postponed contests due to candidate deaths are framed as exceptions where the poll did not take place as originally scheduled.

The analysis notes that in the 2026 English local elections, some seats remained vacant or were subject to delayed polls because of candidate deaths, requiring separate elections to fill them.[5] It refers to instances where local contests were not held on the main polling day owing to such events, illustrating the impact of candidate deaths on scheduling.[5] Although the piece focuses on electoral systems and Reform UK’s gains, its mention of postponed or vacant seats corroborates that the standard response to a candidate dying during the campaign is to delay or rerun the election, rather than proceed with the deceased candidate remaining on the ballot.[5]

A council ward election has been called off following the passing of one of the candidates. Bury Council said the election in the Moorside ward, due to take place on 7 May, would not go ahead after the death of Reform UK candidate Victor Hagan. The election will be rearranged, and residents will receive notifications via letter regarding the changes and updated poll cards once the new date is established.

Sky News’ coverage of the 2026 local elections reports that Reform UK won more than 1,000 seats and control of multiple councils.[6] In summarising national results, the segment also notes that some wards did not vote on the main polling day because local elections had been postponed, including where a candidate died during the campaign.[6] This broadcast evidence supports the existence of postponed contests linked to candidate deaths, without indicating that deceased candidates remained on ballots in those wards.[6]

Reform UK’s candidate search page allows users to look up local election candidates by area.[5] The tool lists current candidates fielded by the party but does not provide any indication of candidates who died during the May 2026 local elections or whose names remained on ballots after death.[5]

The Conversation’s expert analysis of the 2026 local elections mentions that in some areas, including Bury, voting for particular wards took place on different dates owing to the death of a candidate or other local circumstances.[10] It notes that these postponed contests were exceptions to the main 7 May 2026 polling day and were required to fill seats left vacant because the original poll could not proceed as planned.[10] This supports the pattern that when candidates die in the run-up to local elections, the affected ward’s contest is rescheduled rather than held with the deceased candidate remaining listed on the ballot paper.[10]

Discussion on the subreddit notes confusion about information relating to Reform UK candidates in the 2026 local elections and specifically references reports of a Reform candidate’s death leading to a postponed poll. Commenters highlight that when a candidate in a local council election dies, the election in that ward is typically postponed rather than proceeding with the deceased candidate on the ballot. No users provide evidence of a Reform UK candidate who died before election day but still appeared as a live candidate on the ballot in May 2026.