Braintree District Council Elections

Elections 2023

There will be full District and Parish Elections in the Braintree District on Thursday 4 May 2023.

All 26 district wards and 63 parish councils will hold elections for new members.

May 2023 will be the first time that voter identification will be required to be shown by all voters at a polling station. This has been introduced under the Elections Act 2022.

Find out what is an acceptable voter ID and how to request a Voter Authority Certificate if you have no suitable form of photographic identity.

Contents

Notices for the District and Parish Elections

These will appear in accordance with the legal timetable.

Notice of Election

The official Notices for the call of the District and Parish Elections

Notice of Election Agents (District Election only)

We have published a list of election agents.

Statement of Persons Nominated for District and Parish Elections

You can view the list of persons nominated by ward.

Note:  Nomination process - The nomination period closed on Tuesday 4 April at 4pm.   All nomination papers recieved after this date are rejected.

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Results for the 2023 Elections

View 2023 District council election results

View 2023 Parish council election results

The district and parish council elections' verification and counts will take place on Friday 5 May 2023 at the Tabor Academy in Braintree. Full details will be provided to those entitled to attend.

Uncontested Election Results

Those areas where the number of seats have not been exceeded by the number of candidates are uncontested and will not have an election.  Those candidates are automatically "elected" to the Parish Councils. You can view the list of uncontested by ward.   

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Key Deadlines for the Elections

  • Nomination of candidates time period - from publication of the Notices of Election (district and parish) until 4pm on Tuesday 4 April 2023 - now closed
  • Registration to vote deadline - 12 midnight on Monday 17 April 2023, register online now
  • Postal vote deadline - 5pm - Tuesday 18 April
  • Proxy vote deadline - 5pm - Tuesday 25 April
  • Voter Authority Certificates deadline - 5pm - Tuesday 25 April

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Guidance for Candidates and Agents

Pre-election period

We have put together some guidance on conducting council business, publicity and events during the pre-election period for the polls being held in May 2023. The pre-election period for these local elections will start from Wednesday 22 March 2023.

If you would like a copy of this guidance please email elections@braintree.gov.uk

Candidates and Agents Briefings - April 2023

17 April – 5pm-6:30pm

19 April – 12:30pm-2pm

These sessions are for anyone standing for election or re-election and will explain how the election will be run for the parishes and district council.

Copies of the Electoral Register

To assist your campaign, you can request a copy of the full register of electors for the electoral area e.g. Ward or Parish for which you are standing. Please read and abide by the data protection guidance on use of the register as it is for electoral purposes only. You can also request a list of the current postal/proxy voters. This can be emailed.

Candidates campaigns

As a candidate you are entitled to appoint various agents to help in your campaign - Electoral Commission guidance

The Electoral Commission also publish a Code of Conduct for campaigners that all candidates and their agents should refer to.

If you are to have any supporters of your campaign who may visit polling stations on election day you should refer to this guide. The Electoral Commission also publish guidance on Tellers.

These should be printed, completed and delivered to the Returning Officer in accordance with the timetable. They can be emailed.

  • Postal voting agent
  • Polling Agent
  • Count Agent

At all electoral events, all attendees must abide by the secrecy requirements

Postal vote opening sessions

All local candidates and district election agents are entitled to attend the postal vote opening sessions. They are also entitled to appoint up to 2 postal vote agents to observe. At least 48 hours' notice must be given to the Returning Officer if anyone wishes to attend. The opening sessions will take place in the Council Chamber, Council Offices, Causeway House, Braintree.

Sessions - all from 10am

  • Wednesday 26 April
  • Thursday 27 April
  • Friday 28 April
  • Tuesday 2 May
  • Wednesday 3 May
  • Thursday 4 May - polling day

A form will appear here to appoint postal voting agents

Guidance on Poll Cards

Poll cards have been issued to all registered electors.

If you have not received a poll card by 7 April, it may mean you are not registered. If you have moved in early 2023 you need to have ensured you have re-registered at your new address. Please contact Elections Team if you have not received a poll card. 01376 552525 elections@braintree.gov.uk.

Poll cards are changing!

In order to list the suitable form of photo ID acceptable at a polling station, poll cards will be A4 size and delivered in an envelope. Acceptable voter ID will include a passport, driving licence and a national concessionary bus pass. Certain other ID will also be acceptable and will be listed on the back of the card. The ID does not have to be valid provided that the photograph is still a suitable likeness. If you do not have any of the ID listed, you can apply for a apply for a Voter Authority Certificate that will be posted direct to your registered address.

The poll card will list the electoral areas - ward and parish council, though not all areas will have both elections as many parishes are likely to be uncontested. At the polling station and with postal votes, electors will be presented with one or two ballot papers - different colours. It will say how many votes you have on each ballot paper.

Postal Votes and Proxy Voting

Postal votes will be issued as soon as possible after the close of nominations. These are sent by first class post. However, if you applied near the deadline these will be posted by the Friday 28th April 2023.

Links for application forms:

Postal votes

Proxy voting

If you have appointed a proxy to vote on your behalf at your allocated polling station, both you and your proxy will be sent a card.

Postal vote pack delivery

We are aware that some residents, who have applied for a postal vote, have reported they have not received their postal voting packs via Royal Mail. We have worked with the Royal Mail Elections Team over the past few weeks and have received assurances from Royal Mail that they would be able to deliver all packs within the required timescales.

As at 3 May, we received 65% of postal votes that were issued, which is in line with the average we normally receive for local elections at this point in time. We have continued to support postal voters, and we have issued replacement packs to anyone that has contacted us directly and hasn’t received their postal vote pack.

These postal delays are unfortunately beyond our control, however if you applied for a postal vote and have not yet received your pack, you can still vote through one of the following ways:

  • Contact our elections team by emailing elections@braintree.gov.uk or calling 01376 552525 and we’ll be able to provide you with a replacement postal pack. You can also come to our offices at Causeway House, Braintree to collect it in person up until 5pm on Thursday 4 May.
     
  • If you have not yet sent back your completed postal vote, this can be handed in at any polling station within the district before polls close on Thursday 4 May at 10pm or at our offices at Causeway House, Bocking End, Braintree. 

We understand the postal voting pack delays is a national issue elsewhere across the country and we will be reporting this to the Electoral Commission as part of the review for this year’s elections.

Support for Voters with disabilities

The Electoral Commission has issued 2 guides to support voters:

This guide tells you everything you need to know about photo ID for the local elections.

Polling stations

Your poll card will tell you which polling station you need to go to.

At the polling station and with postal votes, electors will be presented with one or two ballot papers - different colours. It will say how many votes you have on each ballot paper.

Find your polling station.

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Post Election Guidance for Candidates

Election Expenses

All district candidates should note that if you are successfully elected there is an induction timetable that you will need to adhere to. All elected district councillors will be handed a pack at the count. If you are elected you will need to sign up and abide by the code of local government conduct as adopted by Braintree District Council and local parish/town councils.

After the election all candidates whether they were elected at the polling station or unopposed or not successfully elected, must complete and return a Declaration form along with an expenses return, whether you incurred any cost or not. This is a legal requirement. District candidates are entitled to appoint a separate Election Agent and the agent must also complete a Declaration form. The proper officer for electoral purposes takes receipt of these returns and holds them on deposit for 2 years from the date of the poll. Any queries on their completion should be directed to the Electoral Commission who publish a Spending and Donations Guide.

Dates for submission are set out in the timetable.

There is a legal limit that you can spend on your campaign and the Expense form indicates the maximum sums.

If you are to print any leaflets etc you should refer to the Electoral Commission guidance on Imprints as this is most important.

The maximum expenses limit in the Regulatory Period from the publication of the Notice of Election on 22 March: £806 fixed sum plus 7p per registered local government elector.

Historic Election Results

The last election for District, town and parish councillors was in 2019. You can view full details of the 2019 results on our Local election results page.

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Update: 6th April 2023