Local elections 2021: how to find out which candidates are running in May Council elections - and how to vote


The biggest set of local elections in decades will take place on 6 May this year, with more seats up for grabs than at any time since a major local government restructure in 1973.
Most councils in England and Wales have at least some seats up for re-election, due to last year’s elections being postponed as a result of the pandemic.
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Hide AdThere will also be separate elections taking place for the Welsh and Scottish devolved parliaments, as well as a parliamentary by-election in Hartlepool.
Local councils have a number of responsibilities, from social care to planning and rubbish collection.
So how do the elections work, and who are the candidates? This is what you need to know.
Can I vote in the local elections?
If you have previously registered to vote in local or general elections at your current address, you will be eligible to vote in May.
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Hide AdThe deadline to register was 19 April, but you can check whether you’re already registered by contacting your local authority - to find out who to contact, enter your postcode on the government's website.
You can vote in person at a polling station on 6 May, or by post if you are registered to do so.
What are the local elections?
Whereas in a general election we vote for MPs to represent parliamentary constituencies, local elections relate to local authorities.
In some parts of the country, local government has a two-tier structure, with a number of smaller district councils sitting under a larger county council, and the responsibilities divided between them.
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Hide AdIn other parts of the country, a single unitary authority representing an entire area will be responsible for all the functions of local government.
There are a number of other roles up for election, including single and combined authority mayors, and Police and Crime Commissioners.
Who are the candidates in my area?
To find out which elections you can vote in, or which are taking place in your area, you can go to the Electoral Commission’s website and put in your postcode.
Which councils have seats up for election?
Most councils in England have at least some seats up for grabs in the 2021 local elections, due to the postponement of last year’s elections.
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Hide AdSome areas will elect only a third of councillors, while others will have half the total seats up, and the rest will have all their seats up for election.
Councils with a third of seats up:
Amber Valley |
Barnsley |
Basildon |
Blackburn with Darwen |
Bolton |
Bradford |
Brentwood |
Broxbourne |
Burnley |
Bury |
Calderdale |
Cambridge |
Cannock Chase |
Castle Point |
Cherwell |
Coventry |
Crawley |
Derby |
Eastleigh |
Elmbridge |
Epping Forest |
Exeter |
Gateshead |
Harlow |
Hart |
Havant |
Hyndburn |
Ipswich |
Kingston-upon-Hull |
Kirklees |
Knowsley |
Leeds |
Lincoln |
Liverpool |
Maidstone |
Manchester |
Milton Keynes |
Mole Valley |
Newcastle |
North East Lincolnshire |
North Hertfordshire |
North Tyneside |
Norwich |
Oldham |
Peterborough |
Plymouth |
Portsmouth |
Preston |
Reading |
Redditch |
Reigate and Banstead |
Rochdale |
Rochford |
Rossendale |
Rugby |
Runnymede |
Rushmoor |
Salford |
Sandwell |
Sefton |
Sheffield |
Slough |
Solihull |
South Tyneside |
Southampton |
Southend-on-Sea |
St Albans |
St Helens |
Stevenage |
Stockport |
Sunderland |
Swindon |
Tameside |
Tamworth |
Tandbridge |
Three Rivers |
Thurrock |
Trafford |
Tunbridge Wells |
Wakefield |
Walsall |
Watford |
Welwyn Hatfield |
West Lancashire |
West Oxfordshire |
Wigan |
Winchester |
Wirral |
Woking |
Wokingham |
Wolverhampton |
Worcester |
Worthing |
Councils with half the seats up:
Adur |
Cheltenham |
Fareham |
Gosport |
Hastings |
Nuneaton and Bedwith |
Full councils up for re-election
Basingstoke and Deane |
Bristol |
Buckinghamshire |
Cambridge |
Cambridgeshire |
Cornwall |
Chorley |
Derbyshire |
Devon |
Doncaster |
Durham |
Essex |
Gloucester |
Gloucestershire |
Hartlepool |
Halton |
Hampshire |
Hertfordshire |
Isle of Wight |
Kent |
Lancashire |
Leicestershire |
Lincolnshire |
North Northamptonshire |
Nottinghamshire |
Northumberland |
Norfolk |
Oxford |
Oxfordshire |
Pendle |
Rotherham |
Staffordshire |
Stroud |
Suffolk |
Surrey |
Shropshire |
Warwickshire |
West Northamptonshire |
West Sussex |
Warrington |
Wiltshire |
Worcestershire |
Mayoral elections
Combined authority mayors
Cambridgeshire and Peterborough |
Greater London |
Greater Manchester |
Liverpool City region |
Tees Valley |
West Midlands |
West of England |
West Yorkshire |
Single authority mayors
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Hide AdBristol |
Doncaster |
Liverpool |
North Tyneside |
Salford |
Police and Crime Commissioner elections
Avon and Somerset |
Bedfordshire |
Cambridgeshire |
Cheshire |
Cleveland |
Cumbria |
Derbyshire |
Devon and Cornwall |
Dorset |
Durham |
Dyfed-Powys |
Essex |
Gloucestershire |
Gwent |
Hampshire |
Hertfordshire |
Humberside |
Kent |
Lancashire |
Leicestershire |
Lincolnshire |
Merseyside |
Norfolk |
Northamptonshire |
Northumbria |
North Wales |
North Yorkshire |
Nottinghamshire |
South Wales |
South Yorkshire |
Staffordshire |
Suffolk |
Surrey |
Sussex |
Thames Valley |
Warwickshire |
West Mercia |
West Midlands |
Wiltshire |