Local government elections in England

The voting system

First past the post.

Who am I voting for?

Between one and three councillors to represent your ward on the local council. There are 388 local councils in England and about 20,000 councillors.

How to vote

Always read the instructions for filling in the ballot paper carefully, even if you have voted before.

The ballot paper lists the name of each candidate along with their party name, party logo and their address.

Depending on where you live you will be able to vote for between one and three candidates. The instructions at the top of your ballot paper will tell you how many candidates you can vote for.

Simply put an X (a cross) next to each candidate that you wish to vote for. You do not have to use all of your votes; the suggested number is a maximum.

If you make a mistake then you can ask the polling staff to give you another ballot paper.

You may also be voting in other elections on the same day.

Who is elected?

The number of candidates to be elected will be the same as the number of votes that you were allowed. The candidate with the most votes is elected first, then if required the candidate with the second highest number of votes is elected, then the third placed candidate.

No candidate needs to get more than half of the votes cast. If there is a tie then a candidate is selected by the drawing of lots (i.e. a method of selection by chance such as tossing a coin or picking a name out of a hat).