The 1953 Leeds municipal elections were held on Thursday 7 May 1953,[1] with one third of the council as well as a vacancy in Richmond Hill to be elected.[2]
Winning control of Leeds was one of Labour's highlights in a night that seen them make gains across the country.[1] Whilst there was a swing away from Labour to the Conservatives of over four percent[3] from the previous year's high benchmark, Labour were able to repeat most of the gains they achieved the year before, with the two exceptions being Armley - a seat they already held - and Beeston, which the Tories managed to hold by sixty-six votes this time around. In total they gained seven seats, replacing the Tories slim majority of two with a majority of twelve.[2] Turnout continued its trend downwards with a post-war low of 41.4%.[3]