Green Party's Mark Strong has won the Queen's Park by-election with 1,139 votes to Labour's 802. Turnout was 33.36%. Full result and what changes for the ward.
Mark Strong of the Green Party has won the Queen’s Park by-election in Brighton. He took 1,139 votes, 337 more than Labour’s Steve Gladwin. The returning officer declared the result on Friday 25 September.
It is a Green gain. Labour’s Milla Gauge won the seat at a by-election in May 2024, and the vacancy arose when she resigned in August.
The figures come from the council’s declaration of result.
The full result
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Strong | Green Party | 1,139 | 50.1% |
| Steve Gladwin | Labour Party | 802 | 35.3% |
| John Shepherd | Reform UK | 160 | 7.0% |
| Stefan Sönke Speckesser | Conservative | 97 | 4.3% |
| Rudi Dikty-Daudiyan | Liberal Democrats | 74 | 3.3% |
Turnout was 33.36%. Nine ballot papers were rejected: seven unmarked or void for uncertainty, one voting for more than one candidate, and one carrying a mark that could identify the voter. The shares are our calculation from the 2,272 valid votes.
Three by-elections in three years
This was the ward’s third by-election since May 2024. Queen’s Park elects two councillors.
- 2 May 2024: Labour’s Milla Gauge won with 1,241 votes, ahead of the Green candidate on 766. Turnout was 38.94% (council result page).
- 18 September 2025: Green’s Marina Lademacher won with 1,133 votes to Labour’s 729. Turnout was 33.28% (declaration).
- 24 September 2026: Green’s Mark Strong won with 1,139 votes to Labour’s 802. Turnout was 33.36%.
The Green vote has barely moved between the last two contests: 1,133 last year, 1,139 this year. Labour recovered 73 votes on 2025 but finished well short of its 2024 total.
Reform UK’s John Shepherd stood in both of the last two contests. His vote fell from 237 in 2025 to 160 this week. Rudi Dikty-Daudiyan of the Liberal Democrats also stood both times, going from 98 to 74.
What it means for you
Both Queen’s Park councillors are now Green: Marina Lademacher and Mark Strong. They are the people to contact about ward casework, such as parking, planning, housing repairs and rubbish collection.
It does not change who runs the city. On 24 September the council’s register of members listed 31 Labour councillors out of 53 sitting. That is a majority on the 54-seat council whoever won this seat.
Our polling day article has the list of candidates and stations.
If you missed the registration deadline for this poll, registering to vote now puts you on the roll for the next one. While you are dealing with the council, our pages cover bin collection days, council tax bands and parking in Brighton.
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