The Leeds County Borough municipal elections were held on 14 May 1971, with one third of the councillors up for vote including a double vacancy in Talbot. Reflecting national patterns, the results were a near mirror-image of the 1968 results, as Labour achieved their highest vote share since 1945, and their greatest number of votes since 1953. It was the Conservatives who sunk to a low-point this time around, setting post-war record lows in both vote percentages and actual votes. However, with the defeat being less severe and the entirety of the council not being elected this time, the Conservatives held on to control with the superior number of aldermen allotted to them the previous year. Overall turnout across the city was 37.8%.