North Northamptonshire citizens urged to prepare now for May elections

02 March 2021

Preparations for local elections in May are underway and North Northamptonshire residents are being urged to make note of important deadlines.

On Thursday, 6 May 2021 a poll will be held to elect Councillors for the new North Northamptonshire Council (NNC).

The new unitary authority will replace Corby Borough Council, East Northamptonshire Council, Kettering Borough Council and the Borough Council of Wellingborough and Northamptonshire County Council on Thursday, 1 April.

Electors will also be able to cast votes for the Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner and representatives for the 95 Parish Councils across North Northamptonshire.

For anyone who wants to stand in the election, they will be able to submit their nomination paper from Friday, 26 March and the deadline is 4pm on Thursday, 8 April.

The deadline for those who want to take part in the election but are not yet registered to vote is Monday, 19 April.

For those who wish to vote by proxy, where someone else can attend the polling station to vote on their behalf, they should apply to do so by no later than 5pm on Tuesday, 27 April.

Rob Bridge, the Returning Officer for North Northants, said:

With the new council coming into existence on 1 April, the May elections are more important than ever.

At the same time public health remains the highest priority and the Government is keeping the election under constant review.

But I would assure voters that when the elections take place, we will be ready and have measures in place to keep people safe.

There’ll be one-way systems, we’ll limit the number of people allowed in polling stations at one time and hand sanitizer will be made widely available.

But even with these extra measures, people with underlying health conditions will still be concerned, and there will be longer queues.

That’s why we want voters to take note of these dates, plan ahead, speak to friends, family and neighbours and get ready for the May election now.

Notes:

While Rob Bridge as Chief Executive of the new unitary authority takes on the role of Returning Officer and is coordinating the election across North Northants, the election teams in East Northamptonshire, Corby, Kettering and Wellingborough are currently still separate. They will be brought together once the new unitary authority is established on 1 April.

For these elections voters will still need to apply for postal and proxy votes via their existing district or borough council election team.

Therefore, voters in Corby wanting to request a postal or proxy vote can do so by emailing [email protected] or calling 01536 464012/14.

Those in East Northamptonshire should email [email protected] or call 01832 742119.

Those in Kettering should email [email protected] or call 01536 534353.

Those in Wellingborough should email [email protected] or call 01933 231 513.

Anyone wishing to vote must ensure they are on the electoral register, by visiting www.gov.uk/register-to-vote, where they will be asked to provide their name, National Insurance number and date of birth.

Anyone wishing to stand for election should visit the Local Government Association’s Be a Councillor webpage – www.local.gov.uk/be-councillor.