On May 7, voters in Hull will head to the polls to elect councillors for the first time in two years. Elections will take place in 19 of the council’s 21 wards – if you live in the Kingswood or Ings wards, elections will not take place where you live. In the other 19 wards voters will elect one of their three councillors meaning a total of 19 seats are up for grabs out of the 57 in the Guildhall.
Voters will have to show photo ID when voting in person on May 7. Various forms of photo ID are acceptable, including a UK passport, a UK driving licence, a Blue Badge, and an HM Armed Forces Veteran Card. More information about voter ID can be found here.
The votes are to elect councillors. The result of the votes will have no direct impact on Hull’s MPs, the Mayor, or the Government. Hull City Council makes decisions that affect a number of day-to-day services in the city such as on roads, housing, council tax, bins, and social care.
The result in each ward is calculated using a basic First Past the Post (FPTP) system. This means that the winner in each ward is simply the candidate who receives the most votes. A majority of votes is not required in each ward.
For a party to have control of the council they require a majority of seats. Currently the Liberal Democrats run the council with a majority of one, whilst the opposition is predominantly made up of Labour councillors.
Once polls close at 10pm on polling day, a count will be held overnight at the Guildhall. By the early hours on Friday, May 8, we will likely know how voters in each ward voted and how/if the political weighting of the council has been altered.
A link to the full list of candidates can be found here.
By: Andrew Spence, LDRS
