Every Tunbridge Wells candidate after your vote in the Local Elections

Voters across Tunbridge Wells borough, including in Pembury, Culverden and Cranbrook will be heading to the polls

Voters across Tunbridge Wells are set to head to the polls on Thursday, May 7 in order to elect 15 councillors across 13 electoral wards. The last election held for Tunbridge Wells Borough Council was in 2024 and results at the time left the Lib Dems in overall control holding 22 of the 39 available seats.

At the time, the Conservatives were the second largest party with seven seats, Labour had five, the Tunbridge Wells Alliance (TW Alliance) had three and the Independents for Tunbridge Wells (IfTW) had the final seat. Since then, changes have meant the current situation going into the election sees the Lib Dems with 21 seats, the Tories have eight, Labour four, TW Alliance three, IfTW have one and the final two seats are vacant.

The Lib Dems will be looking to retain overall control of the council and are defending seven of the 15 seats up for grabs on May 7. Of the remaining seats, the Conservatives are defending three while Labour, TW Alliance and IfTW are all defending one seat each.

The two remaining seats being contested are vacant. Both Reform UK and the Green Party will be hoping to win seats on the council with Reform standing candidates in every ward and the Greens standing candidates in every ward other than Hawkhurst, Sandhurst and Benenden.

The elections in Tunbridge Wells are the only ones taking place in Kent in 2026, although across the UK major elections are taking place in neighbouring Surrey and London. Across Tunbridge Wells’ 13 electoral wards one councillor will be elected in 2026, other than in the wards of Sherwood and Southborough and Bidborough, where two councillors will be elected in order to fill vacancies.

A full list of every candidate standing in the Tunbridge Wells 2026 Local Elections is available below:

Cranbrook, Sissinghurst and Frittenden

• Matthew Beattie, Reform
• Alexander Ellison, Con
• Paul Froome, Green
• Vivian Widgery, Lib Dem

Culverden

• Ahsan Ahmad, Ind
• Alex Dunn, Con
• Aleksander Klimanski, Lab
• Mark McBennett, Green
• David Osborne, Lib Dem
• Tina Seymour, Reform

Hawkhurst, Sandhurst and Benenden

• Michael Appelbe, Lib Dem
• Ellen Neville, TW Alliance
• John Spence, Reform
• Rosanna Taylor-Smith, Con

Paddock Wood

• Trveor Bisdee, Green
• Christopher Digby, Lib Dem
• Begnat Robichaud, Reform
• Lynne Scott, Con

Pantiles

• Daniel Dzenkowski, Con
• Joe Mattei, Green
• Kristof Niewolski, Reform
• Dominic Nutland Frankel, Lab
• Pamela Wilkinson, Lib Dem

Park

• Richard Brown, Lib Dem
• Stephen Burgess, Lab
• Alasdair Fraser, Green
• Michael Jerrom, Reform
• Nick Pope, TW Alliance
• David Scott, Con

Pembury and Capel

• Val Dachille, Reform
• David Hayward, Independents for TW
• Andrew Hobart, Con
• Sue Lovell, Green
• Nick Slessor-Pavely, Lib Dem

Rural Tunbridge Wells

• Dennis Deane, Reform
• Susan Hindle Barone, Lib Dem
• David Knight, Con
• Anne Musker, Lab
• Helen Yeo, Green

Rusthall and Speldhurst

• Stephanie Gandon, Green
• Rob Grundley, Reform
• Kit Hawes-Webb, TW Alliance
• Greg Holder, Lab
• Ian Standing, Lib Dem
• David Sumner, Con

Sherwood (will elect two)

• Christian Atwood, Con
• Chris Hoare, Reform
• Tina Kesterton, Lab
• Oliver Kinkade, Reform
• Eben Lenton, Green
• Kate Sergeant, Green
• Courtney Souper, Lib Dem
• Andrew Wallace, Lib Dem
• Ellis Wiggins, Con

Southborough and Bidborough (will elect two)

• Jack Bradley, Con
• Aaron Brand, English Democrat
• Maria Gavin, Green
• Stephen Humphreys, Reform
• Kimberley Johnson, Lib Dem
• Richard Long, Con
• Robert Mayall, Reform
• Ash Shukla, Lib Dem
• Iqbal Sidhu, Green

St James’

• George Barr, Con
• Gavin Barrass, Lib Dem
• Philip Dwyer, Reform
• Nick Maltby, Lab
• Lucy Miller, Green

St John’s

• Lorna Blackmore, Lab
• Lewis Jenkins, Green
• Alexander Lewis-Grey, Con
• Ukonu Obasi, Lib Dem
• Chris Pendleton, Reform