Since August 2022 the council has been led by a Labour minority administration.

[4] The first election to North Lanarkshire Council was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new system came into force on 1 April 1996.

Political control of the council since 1996 has been as follows:[5] The leaders of the council since 1996 have been:[6] Following the 2022 election and subsequent changes of allegiance and by-elections up to July 2024, the composition of the council was: Progressive Change North Lanarkshire was registered as a political party in July 2024.

[9] It had previously been a group of independents, all of whom had been elected as SNP councillors.

[13] Since 2007 elections have been held every five years under the single transferable vote system, introduced by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004.