Elections 2026: The Result

The Scottish National Party (SNP) has won its fifth Scottish Parliament election in a row, taking 58 seats at Scotland’s 2026 parliamentary election.

The results were as follows:

SNP 58 (-6)
LAB 17 (-4)
REF 17 (+17)
GRN 15 (+6)
CON 12 (-19)
LDM 10 (+6)

It returned the SNP as the largest party at Holyrood, but not with an outright majority.

With no single party holding a majority, the next Scottish Government is likely to rely more heavily on negotiation and cross-party cooperation to pass budgets and legislation.

In practical terms this can lead to slower decision-making, but it can also encourage broader consultation with stakeholders across local government, business, trade unions, charities, and civic organisations.

For Scotland’s third sector, the next parliamentary term is likely to bring both challenges and opportunities.

In our manifesto we have called on the next Scottish Government to follow SCVO’s Fair Funding Principles to ensure longer term, more flexible funding for charities. We have also encouraged continued focus on the public service reform agenda with a focus on improving public and third sector collaboration at local and national level.

You can read what each political party had to say about third sector support on their manifestos here.

As we begin a new parliamentary term, Children in Scotland looks forward to working with MSPs across the chamber to improve outcomes for children and young people in Scotland.