Local Elections 4th May 2023
Elections will take place this year on the 4th May to elect councillors for Evesham Town Council and Wychavon District Council. This is your opportunity to choose who will represent you on these councils for the next four years. Or, if you want to play a bigger part in serving your local community, why not consider standing for election yourself?
Voting
Voting in person at a polling station
This year, you will need to bring photo ID with you when you vote in person at a polling station. This follows a change in the law by the UK government. For information on what form of ID is acceptable, please see the Electoral Commission’s guidance on their website:
Postal Voting
Alternatively, you can apply for a postal vote. The deadline to apply in time for this year’s local elections is 5pm on Tuesday 18th April. You can download an application form from the Electoral Commission here:
Proxy Voting
If a postal vote is impractical for you (for example, if you’re going to be out of the country and unable to post it in time), or even if you’ve left it too late to apply for a postal vote, you can also apply to vote by proxy. You can do this up to 5pm on Tuesday 25th April. In certain circumstances, where you have an emergency that means you can’t vote in person, you can apply for an emergency proxy. You can do this up to 5pm on polling day itself.
How you apply for a proxy vote depends on your circumstances, so please read the information on the Electoral Commission’s website:
No matter how you vote, though, don’t forget to use it.
Standing for Election
If you want to do more than just vote, why not stand for election yourself? Local councils play a vitally important role in the life of their local communities. At every election there will be existing councillors who are calling it a day and need to be replaced. And, of course, you might fancy your chances of replacing someone against their will by defeating them at the ballot box!
So, if you’ve ever found yourself complaining on social media about the decisions made by the council, why not become one of the people making the decisions? Or if you’re generally happy with what the council is doing, but want to make sure that continues, then you should think about standing for election.
There are no qualifications necessary for being a local election candidate other than being on the electoral roll, being at least 18 and having what’s known as a “qualifying connnection” with the council you want to be elected to. Most people qualify simply by living there. You don’t need GCSEs, a degree, or any other paper qualifications.
Other than that, the only requirements are that you are committed to attending council meetings, you are willing to uphold the council’s Code of Conduct, and you believe that you have the ability to make a positive contribution to your community.
You can either stand for election as a representative of a political party, or as an independent. If you’d prefer to stand as a party candidate, then please get in touch with the local branch of your chosen party and they’ll guide you through the process. If you’d rather stand as an independent, then you’ll need to get the candidate nomination forms from Wychavon and complete them yourself. But it’s not that difficult.
If you are thinking of standing for election, these are the key dates you need to know:
- Monday 27th March – Official announcement of election. Time to download your nomination papers, if you haven’t already got them.
- Tuesday 4th April – Deadline for handing in your nomination papers.
- Wednesday 5th April – Official announcement of candidates. The election campaign formally starts!
- Thursday 4th May – Polling day.
- Friday 5th May – Count day for Wychavon and Evesham Town Council. We expect this will be in Pershore Leisure Centre, as previously. As a candidate you are entitled to attend the count.
- Monday 15th May – Newly elected, and re-elected, Evesham Town Councillors take their seats for the first time at the Annual Council.
More detailed information will be in your nomination pack when you download it.
Register to Vote
If you want to vote, or stand for election, you need to be on the electoral roll. That may sound obvious, but you’d be surprised at the number of people who forget to make sure that they are registered.
Registration is quick and simple to do. Just go to the government’s voter registration page and fill in your details:
If you aren’t sure whether you’re registered or not, then it won’t hurt to submit your details again. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Boundary Changes
This year, the local elections will take place using a new set of ward boundaries drawn up by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. This will affect elections for both Wychavon District Council and Evesham Town Council.
So, depending on where you live, you might find that you are voting for councillors in a different ward than last time, or the ward you are voting in may have changed its name.
You can read more about the boundary changes, and the reasons why they have been made, at the LGBCE website:
This will not affect your right to vote, or change the way you vote.