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Internal Affairs
Election of members of local authorities are held once every three years, on the second Saturday in October.
The next elections will be held on October 8, 2016.
Some local polls may also be held in conjunction with elections.
By-elections are held when a vacancy occurs.
The triennial elections of regional councils, city and district councils, community boards and local boards are held at the same time as elections for district health boards and licensing trusts.
Your council’s Election Statistics for the past three elections are found under its profile.
Key dates for local authority elections 2016
| 27 June 2016 | Electoral Commission enrolment campaign starts |
| 15 July 2016 | Nominations open for candidates. Nominations have to be sent to the electoral officer for the council, district health board or licensing trust. Rolls open for inspection at council offices and other sites locally |
| 12 August 2016 | Nominations close at 12 noon. Rolls close. After this date, anyone who is entitled to vote and who is not enrolled as an elector, or whose details are incorrectly recorded on the roll, will have to cast a ‘special vote’ |
| 17 August 2016 | Election date and candidates’ names publicised by electoral officers. |
| 16-21 September 2016 | Voting documents delivered to households. Electors can post the documents back to electoral officers as soon as they have voted. |
| 8 October 2016 | Polling day — The voting documents must be at the council before voting closes at 12 noon. Preliminary results (i.e. once all ‘ordinary’ votes are counted) will be available as soon as possible afterwards. |
| 13-19 October 2016 | Official results (including all valid ordinary and special votes) declared. |
