At the previous election in 2017, the Labour Party won the most seats and formed a minority administration. The same happened at this election in 2022, with Stephen McCabe continuing as leader of the council after the election.
Note: "Votes" are the first preference votes. The net gain/loss and percentage changes relate to the result of the previous Scottish local elections on 5 May 2017. This may differ from other published sources showing gain/loss relative to seats held at dissolution of council.
On 17 May 2022, Labour announced that it had secured enough support from independent councillors to form a new minority administration. Council Leader Stephen McCabe said: "I am delighted that after a week of discussions and negotiations with the other groups on the council I have been able to secure sufficient cross-group support for Inverclyde Labour to lead the next administration."[3] Also, as part of the deal, Drew McKenzie became Inverclyde Council's first Independent Provost, with all previous Provosts being either Labour or Lib Dem councillors.[4]
On 3 September 2024, Labour councillor Martin McCluskey announced that he was resigning as a councillor after being elected as the Member of Parliament for the Inverclyde and Renfrewshire West constituency at the 2024 United Kingdom general election. A by-election has been scheduled for 7 November 2024.[5][6] The by-election was won by the Labour candidate Ian Hellyer.