Get ready to have your say on Thursday 6 May
Voters will go to the polls on Thursday 6 May for important local elections in St Albans District.
Exactly 110,592 people are eligible to vote with 21,724 having applied to do so by post.
Twenty seats on St Albans City and District Council will be contested while there are also elections for Hertfordshire County Council and the Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner.
Measures have been taken to ensure polling stations will be COVID-secure and residents voting in person are urged to keep themselves and others safe. They should:
- Wear a face mask.
- Bring their own pen or pencil.
- Clean their hands when entering or leaving the polling station.
- Maintain social distancing.
Voters should not attend a polling station if they have symptoms of COVID-19 or if they have been asked to self-isolate
They can instead apply for an emergency proxy vote up to 5pm on polling day. This allows them to nominate someone they trust to vote on their behalf.
Amanda Foley, the District’s Electoral Registration Officer, said:
Your poll card will tell you where to find your polling station.
You do not need your poll card to vote, but we do encourage you to bring it with you to make the process quicker and more efficient.
Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm while voters who have opted to vote by post must return their postal ballot pack by 10pm. They can hand it in at their polling station if they don’t have time to return it by post.
Ailsa Irvine, Director of Electoral Administration and Guidance at the Electoral Commission, said:
If you are voting in person, make sure you remember to bring your face covering and a pen or pencil with you.
At the polling station, help keep yourself and others safe by following the safety measures, including sanitising your hands and keeping a safe distance from others.
If you are self-isolating or become unwell as a result of COVID-19, you don’t need to lose your vote. You will be able to apply for an emergency proxy vote so that someone you trust can vote on your behalf.
To apply for an emergency proxy vote, you should contact the District’s electoral services team at elections@stalbans.gov.uk or 01727 819294.
The District Council has 58 Councillors who serve staggered four year terms with around a third of the seats coming up for election in three out of each four year cycle.
There are no Councillors up for election in the Sandridge and Colney Heath wards this year.
There are byelections in Harpenden East and Harpenden South following the resignations of two Councillors. Two candidates with the most votes will be elected in each of those wards.
Votes for the District election will be counted on Sunday 9 May and the results are due to be announced some time after noon on the Council’s website.
Hertfordshire County Council has 78 Councillors who are elected every four years with 10 seats in St Albans City and District. Votes will be counted on Saturday 8 May.
The Hertfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner serves a four year term with votes counted on Monday 10 May.
Details of candidates who are standing and further information about the elections are available here: https://www.stalbans.gov.uk/elections-thursday-6-may-2021.
There is also a referendum on a neighbourhood plan in the Sandridge Parish Council area and a by-election in the Colney Heath ward of Colney Heath Parish Council.
The Electoral Commission is the independent body which oversees elections and regulates political finance in the UK. It was set up in 2000 and reports to the UK, Scottish and Welsh parliaments.
Contact for the media: John McJannet, Principal Communications Officer: 01727-819533; john.mcjannet@stalbans.gov.uk.