What initially looked like a neat bit of election management has turned into a political car crash.
Having already taken the heat for “postponing” 30 sets of council elections – in some cases for the second time – the UK Government has now been forced into a humiliating U-turn after a legal challenge from Reform.
Whatever you think of the party, Reform saw the problem, called it out and followed through. On that basis alone, they could well be the biggest short-term winners from this situation.
For Sir Keir Starmer, this episode feels like the definition of chaos. It will not change the basic story on local election night – Labour was always heading for a rough set of results – but it reinforces a damaging narrative about his political judgement: too willing to bank short-term fixes that unravel under scrutiny and always slightly behind events rather than shaping them.
Kemi Badenoch does not escape unscathed either. A whole tranche of county councils has now been added back into the mix for May, including Norfolk, Suffolk and the two Sussex counties, on top of already tricky territory like Essex and Surrey.
The official letter confirming the reversal is understated, almost bureaucratic in tone. The consequences are anything but. For Starmer, it may not by itself end his leadership, but it could prove to be the final nail in a coffin that has been under construction for some time. And for Badenoch, the brief post-conference recovery she has enjoyed may turn out to be just that – brief.
Either way, this is one “technical” decision that will have very real political consequences.