Coventry City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Coventry in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. The city is divided up into 18 Wards each with three councillors. Coventry has usually been controlled by the Labour Party over the past few decades, and at times they appeared to be in safe control. However, the Conservatives held control for a short time in the 1970s, and they also held control from July 2004 until 2010. For a time they held control on the casting vote of the Lord Mayor, but they won clear control at the local elections of 4 May 2006. However, in 2010 the Conservatives lost control of Coventry City Council when Labour gained enough seats to have overall control.