Wrexham County Borough Council
Wrexham County Borough Council is the governing body for Wrexham County Borough, a principal area with city status in north Wales, covering Wrexham and the surrounding area.
History
Wrexham County Borough Council was created in 1996 under the Local Government Act 1994. The new county borough of Wrexham covered all of the district of Wrexham Maelor and a small part of the Glyndŵr district, both of which were part of the county of Clwyd. On 1 April 1996 the new Wrexham County Borough Council took over the county-level functions previously performed by Clwyd County Council and the district-level functions from the two district councils, which were abolished.On 1 September 2022 the county borough was awarded city status, but the council continues to style itself "Wrexham County Borough Council".
In November 2023, a councillor's annual basic salary was £17,600, with the council proposing an increase of 6% to £18,666.
Political control
The council has been under no overall control since 1999. Since the 2022 election the council has been led by a coalition of the "Independent Group", comprising 21 of the independent councillors, and the Conservatives. The council's one Liberal Democrat councillor joined the administration in December 2022.The first election to the new council was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its powers on 1 April 1996. Political control of the council since 1996 has been as follows:
Leadership
The role of Mayor of Wrexham is largely ceremonial. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1996 have been:Composition
Following the 2022 election and subsequent changes of allegiance up to August 2025, the composition of the council was:Of the independent councillors, 21 sit as the "Independent Group" which also includes the one Liberal Democrat councillor, two form the "Progressive Independent" group, and the other three do not belong to any group. The next election is due in 2027.
Elections
Since 2012, elections have taken place every five years. The last election was 5 May 2022.| Year | Seats | Independent | Labour | Plaid Cymru | Conservative | Liberal Democrats | Notes |
| Year | Seats | Notes | |||||
| 1995 | 51 | 11 | 33 | 0 | 3 | 4 | Labour majority control |
| 1999 | 52 | 15 | 26 | 0 | 4 | 7 | New ward boundaries. |
| 2004 | 52 | 20 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 10 | |
| 2008 | 52 | 20 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 12 | |
| 2012 | 52 | 19 | 23 | 1 | 5 | 4 | |
| 2017 | 52 | 26 | 12 | 3 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 56 | 23 | 14 | 9 | 9 | 1 | No overall control; Independent / Conservative coalition. New ward boundaries. |
Party with the most elected councillors in bold. Coalition agreements in notes column.