Sunderland Council gives major update on by-election after death of much-loved councillor Dorothy Trueman

One of the three seats in the Washington West ward on Sunderland City Council has remained vacant since the death of Labour councillor and former mayor Dorothy Trueman in November.

She was first elected to the city council to represent the ward in 2010 and during her time on the local authority she served on various committees, including as a member of the adoption panel for several years.

Following her passing, heartfelt tributes were paid to her from across the city.

This included comments from the likes of local authority leader, Labour’s Cllr Michael Mordey, who said Dorothy “was marked by a genuine ability to listen and understand” which “earned her the greatest respect and admiration of colleagues and everyone she represented and met”.

Leading council officers have now confirmed her former seat will remain vacant until the local elections on May 7, 2026.

This is in line with the Local Government Act 1972, which states: “when a vacancy occurs within six months before the day on which the councillor whose office is vacant would have regularly retired, an election shall not be held.”

The Sunderland City Council polls being held in May will be “all-out” local elections following a major review of the city’s electoral wards.

This means revised ward boundaries will be elected for the first time with all 75 council seats contested on one night, marking a major political event for the city.

The review from the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) recently took place as part of a process which aims to update electoral wards to account for several factors, including changes in population, with the new boundaries then elected via a full council election.

Boundary changes in Sunderland are expected to affect “all but one ward” (a total of 24 wards), with several new wards created and old ward names removed.

There will be no change in the number of councillors in Sunderland City Council as part of the latest review, which will remain at 75, with three councillors again to be elected to represent each of the council’s 25 wards.

Hundreds of candidates are expected to throw their hat in the ring to contest Sunderland City Council’s new wards, with the final result set to determine the future political make-up and political leadership of the local authority.

The council will be contacting city residents in coming months to outline the new boundary arrangements and how residents can get involved in local democracy and ensure their vote counts.