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Town Hall & politics · Somerset Council

The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Somerset Council

Mark is run by Somerset Council, with Mark parish council for local matters. The Liberal Democrats have a majority on Somerset Council. Its MP is Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrat), member for Wells and Mendip Hills.

Council tax 2026–27

£2,400

Band D, a year, the middle band every council sets its tax from.

Where it goes →
Band D council tax
£2,400
2026–27, a year
Ward councillors
2
1 ward · Somerset
MP
Tessa Munt
Liberal Democrat · Wells and Mendip Hills
Turnout, July 2024
68%
Wells and Mendip Hills · England 60%
What stands out · In brief

How Mark’s politics has changed since 2021

A majority on Somerset Council

The Liberal Democrats hold a majority on Somerset Council: 61 of its 108 seats as elected. The Conservatives hold 34, the Greens 5, Labour 5 and independents 3. Who’s in charge ↓

Written from the data on this page: Democracy Club results since May 2021, the UK Parliament Members API and MHCLG council tax.

Who’s in charge

Who holds the seats

Seats by party as elected. A party needs 55 of Somerset’s 108 seats to run the council alone.

Unitary council · 108 councillorsSomerset CouncilLiberal Democrat majority
GreenGreenGreenGreenGreenLabourLabourLabourLabourLabourLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratLiberal DemocratIndependentIndependentIndependentConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservative108seats
  • Liberal Democrat61
  • Conservative34
  • Green5
  • Labour5
  • Independent3

Latest election: May 2022.

GreenLabourLiberal DemocratIndependentConservative

Seats are counted from election results: each ward’s most recent winners until its seats are filled. Councillors who have since changed party or resigned aren’t reflected, and which parties lead the council, and who is leader, comes from the council itself.

Results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), elections since May 2021; seats per ward from its EveryElection.

Who runs Mark

The councils that run Mark

One council runs every main service here.

Town or parish councilMark parish council

Local matters: allotments, play areas, halls, footpaths and benches; it is consulted on planning and adds a precept to the council tax bill. A town council is a parish council by another name.

100% of Mark’s residents · Band D precept £31

Unitary councilSomerset Council

Every main council service: schools, social care, roads, bins, planning, housing and libraries.

Website ↗

Who to ask

Bins and recyclingSomerset Council
Planning applicationsSomerset Council
Council housing and homelessnessSomerset Council
Council tax billsSomerset Council
Parks and leisure centresSomerset Council
Allotments, play areas, benchesMark parish council
Potholes, roads and streetlightsSomerset Council
Schools and school placesSomerset Council
Adult and children’s social careSomerset Council
LibrariesSomerset Council
Tips and recycling centresSomerset Council
Police priorities and budgetAvon and Somerset Constabulary police and crime commissioner
Fire safety visitsDevon & Somerset Fire and Rescue

From GOV.UK’s “Understand how your council works”: here one council runs every main service.

Councils from ONS lookups (wards and councils May 2026, parishes 2025), names and websites from GOV.UK’s local council finder; parish councils from MHCLG’s 2026–27 list of precepting parishes.

Who represents Mark

From the parish to Westminster

Every elected tier that speaks for Mark, from the most recent elections.

  1. 1
    Town or parishParish tier
    Mark parish council
  2. 2
    Somerset Council1 ward · 2 councillors
    Matt MartinHarry James Munt
  3. 3
    Police and crime commissionerAvon and Somerset Constabulary · elected May 2024
    Clare Moody
  4. 4
    House of CommonsWells and Mendip Hills
LabourLiberal Democrat

Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. Tap an MP’s name for their contact page on parliament.uk.

Councillors

2 councillors for 1 ward

Wards with at least 2% of the town’s residents, or half their own inside it. Each shows who won its most recent elections, newest first, until its seats are filled.

King Alfred
665 residents · 7% in Mark
  • Matt MartinLiberal Democrat · May 2022
  • Harry James MuntLiberal Democrat · May 2022
Liberal Democrat
Show as a table
WardSeatsElectedWhen
King Alfred7% in Mark · 665 residents2 seats · May 20222
Matt MartinHarry James Munt
May 2022

Councillors can resign, change party or sit as independents between elections; a by-election winner replaces someone not named here. Somerset Council’s website lists who sits now.

Results from Democracy Club’s candidates database (CC BY 4.0; elections since May 2021) and ward seats from its EveryElection, matched to ONS wards (May 2026) and county divisions (May 2025).

Local elections

Somerset council election, May 2022

Results in the wards that make up Mark, as declared. Percentages are of votes cast for candidates in each ward; where a ward elects several councillors, each voter has that many votes.

Seats won in Mark’s wards2 seats · 5 May 2022
Liberal Democrat2

1 ward voted. Every seat in the town’s wards was up.

Next elections

No election is scheduled yet for Mark’s wards in Democracy Club’s list. Councils publish a notice of election about five weeks before polling day.

Who can I vote for? ↗
King Alfred5 May 2022
Matt Martin ElectedLiberal Democrat24.8%
Harry James Munt ElectedLiberal Democrat23.8%
David John HuxtableConservative23.1%
Duncan McGintyConservative20.7%
Charles GrahamGreen7.6%

6,891 votes for candidates · 2 seats, so 2 votes each

ConservativeLiberal DemocratGreen

Candidates and results: Democracy Club (CC BY 4.0), from councils’ declared results; polling dates from Democracy Club’s EveryElection.

Parliament

Mark is in Wells and Mendip Hills constituency

The constituency’s MP and the 4 July 2024 general election, the whole constituency’s result (it reaches beyond Mark).

Wells and Mendip Hills · general election4 July 2024
Tessa Munt ElectedLiberal Democrat46.9%
Meg Powell-ChandlerConservative24.8%
Helen HimsReform UK13.1%
Joe JosephLabour7.0%
Peter WelshGreen4.1%
Abi McGuireIndependent3.7%
Craig ClarkeIndependent0.4%

50,368 votes for candidates · majority 11,121

MP for Wells and Mendip Hills

Tessa Munt

Liberal Democrat, MP since 4 July 2024.

68%

turnout in July 2024: 50,368 votes from 73,538 registered voters. England: 60%.

Majority 11,121 of 50,368 votes (22.1%): wider than in 71% of England’s 543 constituencies.

LabourConservativeLiberal DemocratReform UKGreenIndependent

MPs and results: UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0); constituencies from ONS (2024 boundaries). Percentages are of valid votes; turnout is votes cast over the electorate.

Council money

Mark’s Band D council tax is £2,400 a year

Where a Band D bill goes, what it has cost over the years, and what the councils plan to spend per resident.

COUNCIL TAXBand D · 2026–27 · a Band D home in Mark
Mark parish councilparish precept£30.78
Somerset Councilcouncil£1,950.89
Avon & Somerset police and crime commissionerpolice and crime£308.20
Devon & Somerset Fire and Rescue Authorityfire and rescue£109.68
A year£2,399.55
Bills by band run from 6/9 of Band D (Band A) to 18/9 (Band H). Discounts and support reduce many bills.

Somerset Council keeps £1,950.89 of a Band D bill (81%); the rest goes to the Mark parish council, the Avon & Somerset police and crime commissioner and the Devon & Somerset Fire and Rescue Authority.

Your bill by band

Band A 6/9£1,600
Band B 7/9£1,866
Band C 8/9£2,133
Band D 9/9£2,400
Band E 11/9£2,933
Band F 13/9£3,466
Band G 15/9£3,999
Band H 18/9£4,799

A Band D home in Mark, 2026–27, before discounts. The Valuation Office Agency’s band search gives any home’s band.

Somerset’s councils

Bath and North East Somerset£2,383
North Somerset£2,491
Somerset£2,561

Average Band D in each council area, 2026–27, parish precepts included. Bars start at £2,200.

Council budgets per resident, 2026–27

ServiceSomersetvs England
Adult social care£507+£20
Children’s social care£292+£2
Roads and transport£40−£1
Housing (not council homes’ rents)£31−£30
Bins, street cleaning, environment£150+£31
Libraries, leisure, culture£25−£19
Planning and development£15−£11
Public health£51−£27
Running the council£41−£18
Other£20+£1
Mark’s councils, per residentEngland, all councils
Show as a table, with Somerset
SomersetMark’s councilsSomersetEngland
Adult social care£507£487£487
Children’s social care£292£277£290
Roads and transport£40£33£41
Housing (not council homes’ rents)£31£33£61
Bins, street cleaning, environment£150£136£119
Libraries, leisure, culture£25£16£44
Planning and development£15£16£26
Public health£51£56£78
Running the council£41£46£59
Other£20£8£19
Total, schools apart£1,172£1,108£1,234

Net budgeted service spending, MHCLG Revenue Account budget 2026–27, per resident (ONS mid-2025 estimates). Schools are left out: academies are paid for directly by government, so council school budgets depend on how many schools have converted. Somerset and England: all their councils together. Police, fire and transport authorities aren’t included.

Band D: MHCLG Band D council tax 2026–27 (each authority’s own figure, excluding parish precepts) and Council Tax statistics for town and parish councils 2026–27; since 1993–94, MHCLG’s area averages including parishes.

Get involved

Having a say in how Mark is run

Register to vote

It takes about five minutes online; the deadline is 12 working days before a poll.

gov.uk ↗
Contact your councillors or MP

Type a postcode to write to each of its councillors and its MP.

WriteToThem ↗
Report a pothole or a broken streetlight

GOV.UK sends the report to the council that looks after the road.

gov.uk ↗
Watch or speak at a council meeting

Council and committee meetings are open to the public, with agendas and minutes online.

somerset.gov.uk ↗
Comment on a planning application

Anyone can comment while an application is open for consultation.

somerset.gov.uk ↗
Stand for election

The rules, nomination papers and guidance for council candidates.

Electoral Commission ↗

Questions about how Mark is run

Which council runs Mark?

Mark is run by Somerset Council.

Does Mark have a town council?

Yes: Mark has its own parish-tier council (Mark parish council; town councils are parish councils by another name), which adds £31 to a Band D bill in 2026–27.

Who is the MP for Mark?

Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrat) is the MP for Wells and Mendip Hills, which covers Mark.

How many councillors does Mark have?

2 ward councillors represent Mark’s 1 ward.

When are the next elections in Mark?

No election is scheduled yet in Democracy Club’s list for Mark’s wards. The next UK general election must be held by August 2029.

How much is council tax in Mark?

Band D council tax in Mark is £2,400 for 2026–27. Your bill depends on your home’s band, from A (6/9 of Band D) to H (18/9).

Who controls Somerset Council?

The Liberal Democrats have a majority: 61 of 108 seats as elected. The council’s website lists who leads it now.

Who won the 2022 council election in Mark?

In Mark’s wards on 5 May 2022, Liberal Democrat 2 of the 2 seats up. The Liberal Democrats had the largest share of votes, 48.6%.

Sources: ONS ward, county division, parish, constituency lookups (Census 2021 output areas; Open Government Licence v3.0) · GOV.UK local council finder · Democracy Club candidates (CC BY 4.0) and EveryElection · UK Parliament Members API (Open Parliament Licence v3.0) · MHCLG Band D council tax, parish precepts and Revenue Account budgets 2026–27 (OGL v3.0) · ONS mid-2025 population estimates. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.