[2] Oxford City Council elects half of its councillors to every 2 years to serve four-year terms.

[3][4][5] In October 2023, Labour lost control of the council due to 9 councillors resigning in opposition to Keir Starmer's refusal to call for a ceasefire in the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.

[7] Robert Ford suggested in The Guardian that Oxford would be a key testing ground of dissatisfaction from Labour's left wing and from Muslim and young progressive voters.

Labour made a net loss of a further two seats, but remained the largest party on the council.

A new local party, the Independent Oxford Alliance (IOA), which had only been created earlier in 2024, won four seats.