Rishi Sunak faces his first major election test since his premiership, with millions of voters poised to vote in local elections across the country. England.
Seats in over 230 boroughs will be up for grabs on May 4, with Tory leaders publicly warning that the party could lose up to 1,000 council members.
Labour will seek to capitalize on its strong nationwide polls to help reverse the heavy losses they suffered in 2019 under Jeremy Corbyn.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats will hope, building on the strong results of the recent by-elections, to capture councils in rural and middle class zones.
A worse-than-expected outcome for the Tories could destabilize the unity Sunak has brought to the party and raise questions about leadership again.
But there is a danger for Sir Keir Starmer as well: Labor left activists are ready to lash out with new criticism if he fails to make big headway.
The Telegraph has attempted to look at the main battlefields , which will determine how each party's performance will be judged.
Conservatives vs Labor
Some of the most important clashes will take place in the leadership councils, where the two major parties are vying for control.
Key hotspots will emerge in the London suburbs, which could be a sign that Mr Sunak is starting to turn Tory fortunes around.
Among those for sale are Dartford and Medway, currently run by the Conservatives, and Gravesham, which is run by Labor.
All three areas have voted strongly for Brexit and are a challenge for Sir Keir as he seeks to shed his party's image as pro-European.
3103 Conservatives have the most to lose.
However, the Tories will also have to fight in the constituencies where Reform UK is fielding candidates and trying to take votes.
Thurrock, Basildon and Harlow, all in Essex, are poised to take over and Labor hopes to infiltrate the Tory heartland.
However, campaigners say anger over Sadiq Khan's decision to expand the Ulez low-emission zone to all of Greater London will undermine their hopes.
3103 Labour's recent success has largely come from the south.
In the Midlands, how the Tories perform in Walsall and Dudley will show whether Mr Sunak can keep voters at the Red Wall.
Pollsters will also be watching the results in Leicester, a staunch Labor city where the Conservatives can surprise by getting seats.
Experts predict that the Tories may come out stronger than expected, especially in areas with a high concentration of Hindu voters.
Conservatives vs. Liberal Democrats
Sir Ed Davey's Liberal Democrats are expecting a significant increase in Blue Wall seats in the South, where Boris Johnson alienated Conservative voters.
Dozens of councils are being played out in middle-class rural areas, including Surrey, Hertfordshire and Sussex.
The Liberal Democrats will seek to take over a number of key Conservative-owned fringes, including West Berkshire, East Cambridgeshire and Cherwell.
3,103 Liberal Democrats hope to regain lost ground
They also hope to infiltrate Conservative-held areas such as Maidstone, South Gloucestershire and Welwyn-Hatfield.
Sir Ed's party can also make headway in wealthy parts of the Midlands such as Rugby and Stratford-upon-Avon, as well as parts of the North West.
How well the Tories vote in these areas could be decisive for Mr. Sunak as he seeks to maintain unity within the party.
Many senior Conservative MPs, including current and former cabinet ministers, fear a surge in Lib Dems could unseat them in the next election.
These include Jacob Rees-Mogg , whose constituency in northeast Somerset is already a Liberal Democrat running.
Conservatives vs. Locals
Another sign that Mr. Sunak has managed to win over moderate conservative voters can be seen in the way his party opposes independent candidates.
Four years ago, locally-run groups performed well in the South, but opinion polls predict that the Conservatives can now reclaim their seats.
3103 Conservative councils are in greatest danger
The key battle on this front will take place in Uttlesford, which is run by the residents. , which is in the parliamentary constituency of Kemi Badenoch, Minister of Business and Trade.
Independent campaigners also performed well last time in Ashford and West Devon, which are run by the Conservatives.
Cabinet ministers are in danger.
Another set of results to look at is how the Tories work on councils where the incumbent is a cabinet member.
Local polls are held within the two seats in Surrey that the Liberal Democrats are targeting in the next general election.
This is Surrey Heath, represented by Michael Gove, Level Up Secretary, and Waverley, which is in Jeremy Hunt's constituency.
3103 Conservatives still lead advisers
Ben Wallace, secretary of defense, will be keeping a close eye on results in Preston, as will Mel Stride, secretary of labor and pensions in Middle Devon.
< p>A total of 15 cabinet members will be waiting nervously into the night of May 4 to see how the Tory vote held up against both Labor and the Liberal Democrats.
What will the results mean for the sales manager?
The Tories have already begun managing expectations, with party chairman Greg Hands saying they expect to lose 1,000 seats.
«The independent expectation is that the Conservatives will lose more than 1,000 seats and Labor should make big gains,» he told Sky News.
Just a few weeks ago, Labor activists privately predicted a bloodbath that could see the Tories lose 2,000 seats.
Where are the elections to unitary councils held?
But there is growing optimism behind the scenes in Tory ranks that Mr. Sunak is starting to win back voters.
The prime minister has successfully distanced himself from his two predecessors, Liz Truss and Boris Johnson, who have damaged the party's reputation.
At the same time, focus groups began to see signs that the public was beginning to form a more negative view of Sir Keir.
Lord Hayward, a leading Conservative pollster, said Mr. Sunak will still get through the rough night of May 4th, but it may not be as bad as previously feared.
Where elections are taking place to the city council?
“The mood is getting more positive. This does not mean that the Tories will get seats, they will still give way to both parties,” he told The Telegraph.
“Before the Easter holidays, it was “we can’t do anything.” Now the opinion polls have changed — not dramatically, but clearly in one direction.
«Campaigners who campaigned are now coming back and saying we don't face the same antagonism on the doorstep.
«Voters are not as aggressive as they were last year in regarding Partygate or Brexit in 2019. People don't necessarily believe Rishi Sunak.
«MPs are finding that the electorate either loves Rishi or at least wants to love him. On the contrary, there is evidence that voters are starting to take a more negative view of Keir Starmer.»
Where are the county council elections?
With the Tories as their third leader since the 2019 election, even if the result is worse than expected, there is a realistic prospect of a draft no resignation of the prime minister.
But a poor result will rekindle fears that Mr. Sunak does not have the stellar qualities to achieve the dramatic turn the party needs to win a historic fifth term.
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