Birmingham & Black Country

Local elections 2026
Local elections 2026

Frustration, apathy and hope: Birmingham divided as extraordinary election looms

Is the UK's second city about to see the biggest political shake-up in more than a decade?
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  1. Woman on left wearing a grey jumper, has brown hair and a red lanyard talking into a microphone. Woman on right wearing a hijab, glasses, grey jumper and black cardigan listens in.

  2. A train pulling into Kings Heath Railway Station. It is black and orange and has at least three carriages. There are people standing on the platform, as well as a brown dog and a pushchair

  3. A large green field with a border of trees and bushes. two people walk over the grass. in the foreground is wooden fencing slightly higher than the field. on the other side of it is a concrete path and a road

  4. A woman in a police officer's uniform and hat grins with her arm in the air, while hugging a young blonde girl in red armbands who smiles at her.

  5. A piece of art which has a pink background and a bright blue Nokia phone on it. The screen is green and lit up and in a black text message it reads "snobs?" referring to a club in Birmingham

  6. A mug shot of John Ashby who has short light brown hair and facial hair. he has a grey blanket across his front

  7. A street with cars parked on the left. In the middle of the road is a police car, which is next to a blue tent. There is a white van behind it with its back doors open. To the right is a pavement with litter strewn on the floor and there are three people standing on the pavement with their backs to the camera.

  8. A man with dark hair and a beard is wearing sunglasses. Blue sky is behind him.

  9. Monty Panesar has a black headscarf on and wears black glasses. He has black facial hair and is wearing a teal coloured t-shirt with a Twickenham Cricket Club logo on its chest. It is raining around him.

  10. A man with a bald head and no teeth is mid-conversation as he walks down a stairway outside a court. He is wearing a navy blazer, a white shirt, a red, navy and white tie, and a black crossbody bag. He is holding a vape.

  11. A man with dark hair that has been brushed to either side of his face is pictured looking expressionless in front of a white background. He is clean shaven and has greyish blue eyes.

  12. A black and white photo of a young man in military uniform. He is wearing a cap.

  13. Alan Carr is sat down on a red settee wearing a brown jacket and grey trousers. He is sat next to judge Michelle Ogundehin, who is dressed in a cream jacket and matching skirt. They are joined by ten people, who are all contestants on the series Interior Design Masters. Sophie from Stoke on Trent is among the contestants and is second left in the photograph. She has long red hair and is wearing a yellow shirt, patterned red trousers and a brown gilet. Ben, from Kinver, is stood behind the red sofa with his arms folded, wearing a beige hoodie.

  14. Matthew Marriott pictured smiling. He has short but spiked grey hair, wears a blue blazer and blue collar shirt.

  15. Birmingham Crown Court is a large red brick building with steps leading up to an entrance covered by a large porch. There are trees and bushes either side of the entrance and to the right is a large stone grey statue depicting three heads on top of one another, getting smaller as they go up

  16. A long street with a car park on the left as well as large red brick buildings surrounded by metal fencing. On the right are red brick buildings with grey metal shutters over garages

  17. A woman in a police officer's uniform and hat grins with her arm in the air, while hugging a young blonde girl in red armbands who smiles at her.

  18. A bald man with beard stood against a light green studio wall. He is wearing a camel coloured jacket and black top

  19. Sean Egan, pictured with a neutral expression on his face. He is bald but has a dark blonde beard, he wears a black t-shirt underneath a beige jacket.

  20. A green space with grass and wildflowers with purple petals. In the distance is a blue metro tram at a tram stop

  21. Two women, a man and a child buying toys in the toy department of Rackhams, Birmingham, West Midlands. December 1974.

  22. A man and woman stand together looking at the camera. He has short grey hair and a moustache, and wears a black padded coat with a red lining and a maroom jumper underneath. His wife has blonde shoulder length hair and sunglasses on her head. She has a brown padded coat on, a cream jumper underneath and a necklace. Behind them is a row of shops and a main road.

  23. A couple pose for a picture - the woman on the left has long blonde hair and a light-pink dress. The man has short brown hair, a blue jacket and white shirt. There is an old stone building behind them.

  24. A black man sat a tram stop in a black coat and hat. He is talking to a female BBC reporter with blonde hair. She is wearing a black gillet and faded blue jeans. A blue Midlands Metro tram is passing by