Voting in the May 2022 Local Elections: How does it work?

In most places in the Anglia region it is two - a county council called an upper tier local authority and a district, city or borough council which is a lower-tier local authority.

In some areas there are unitary authorities which run all the local services in their area - set up to replace the two-tier structure. In the Anglia region these are places like Milton Keynes, Peterborough and Southend-on-Sea.

In one part of the Anglia region - Cambridgeshire and Peterborough - there is also a directly elected so-called “metro mayor” and a Combined Authority which looks after strategic planning, housing and transport.

The different councils have responsibility for varying local services.

County Councils run schools, social services and the highways while district, city and borough councils look after planning, household rubbish collections and leisure facilities. Unitary councils run all the local services in their area.

The local authority structure in England has evolved since there was major reform in 1974 but it has been piecemeal with different areas changing at different times making for a complex patchwork of local governance.

The minimum voting age for local elections in England is 18 years old.

Local elections in England operate on the first-past-the-post system means the candidate with the most votes wins. You get to put a cross on the ballot paper next to the person who you want to be elected.

Council wards can have one, two or three local councillors representing the local area so sometimes you will be asked to put one, two or three crosses on your ballot paper.

Depending on the number of council seats to be filled in the area, the candidates in first, second or third place will be elected.

If you want to vote in person, there will be polling stations open from 7am on Thursday 4 May until 10pm that evening.

You need to be registered to vote in advance and you can do at that any time by contacting your local council or going online here.

The deadline for registering to vote for the May 2023 local election is 11.59 pm on Monday 17 April.

If you miss that deadline you can register to vote at time for any future elections - you only need to do it once unless you change address, your name or your nationality.

You can send your vote through the post if you apply to your local council by 5pm on Tuesday 18 April.

You can choose to vote by post if you will be away on polling day or working or it is simply more convenient for you.

If you know that you won’t be able to get to the polling station on polling day, you can ask someone you trust to cast your vote for you. This is called a proxy vote and the person casting your vote is often referred to as your proxy.

There is an application process to follow which must be completed at least six days before polling day. There is more information on the Electoral Commission website here.

If you are infected with Covid-19 or are displaying any of the symptoms, you are expected to follow government health advice and self-isolate at home. You should not be attending polling stations to vote if you have coronavirus.

You can apply for an emergency proxy vote where someone goes to a polling station to cast your ballot for you. This can be done up to 5pm on polling day - Thursday 4 May but you do still need to have been registered to vote in advance.

There is more information on the Electoral Commission website