Reform successfully capitalised on voter frustration to achieve success at the local elections. How they handle the levers of power – and how the Conservatives respond – will define politics for years to come, says Brandon Lewis

A few months ago I wrote about how Reform UK’s rise would reshape the political landscape. At the time, their streak of national poll-topping performances was seen as a harbinger for the end of the two-party stronghold, the existential threat of which had not yet fully crystalised. Now, who could have guessed that Reform’s threatening burst onto the political stage would be announced, emphatically, by just six votes?

Reform’s local election success this past Friday saw the fledgling party haul in 677 council seats, four mayoralities, one Member of Parliament, and control of 10 local councils. It confirmed that a seismic shift in politics is well underway; shifting from the two-party system towards a plurality of untested voices, brought to power by people who........

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