Editing Hampstead (section)

===Hampstead Liberalism===
The area has a significant tradition of educated liberal humanism, sometimes referred to (often disparagingly) as "Hampstead Liberalism". In the 1960s, the figure of the Hampstead Liberal was notoriously satirised by [[Michael Wharton|Peter Simple]] of the ''[[Daily Telegraph]]'' in the character of [[List of Peter Simple's characters|Lady Dutt-Pauker]], an immensely wealthy aristocratic socialist whose Hampstead mansion, Marxmount House, contained an original pair of [[Bukharin]]'s false teeth on display alongside precious Ming vases, [[constructivism (art)|neo-constructivist]] art, and the complete writings of Stalin.<ref>''The Stretchford Chronicles'', ''Michael Wharton'', (London, 1980), pages 216, 236, 284</ref> Michael Idov of ''[[The New Yorker]]'' stated that the community "was the citadel of the moneyed liberal intelligentsia, posh but not stuffy."<ref name=Idov>Idov, Michael. "[http://nymag.com/news/features/establishments/68506/ The Demon Blogger of Fleet Street]." ''[[New York Magazine]]''. 26 September 2010. Retrieved 3 August 2014.</ref> As applied to an individual, the term "Hampstead Liberal" is not synonymous with "[[champagne socialist]]" but carries some of the same connotations. The term is also rather misleading.

As of 2025, the component wards of Hampstead (South Hampstead, Frognal, Hampstead Town and Belsize) have mixed representation. Frognal ward elects two Conservative councillors, Belsize ward elects three Liberal Democrat councillors, South Hampstead elects three Labour councillors, while Hampstead Town is represented by one Liberal Democrat and one Conservative councillor.

South Hampstead is a competitive Labour and Conservative marginal, and Belsize is competitive between the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives, whereas Frognal is a safe Conservative ward. Hampstead Town (including the area of Hampstead Village and [[South End Green]]) has seen a number of tightly fought Conservative and Liberal Democrat contests, and the ward has had mixed representation in recent decades.