Ashfield District Council: How Do I Become a Councillor?

How Do I Become a Councillor?

In order to become a councillor you firstly need to stand for an election as a candidate, and be voted in by the eligible electors for that area.

How do I get nominated?

For District Council elections you will need ten electors registered in the ward for which you wish to stand, to sign your nomination paper. One as proposer, one as seconder and eight assentors.

For Parish Council elections you will need a proposer and a seconder each of whom must be electors registered in the Parish or Parish ward.

Nomination papers are handed out by the Returning Officer prior to an election. To see a copy of what a nomination paper usually looks like, please click here.

Can anybody stand?

There are a number of qualifications that you have to meet before you can stand for election to be a councillor and these are outlined below.

Please note that the following is intended as an introductory guide only. You should also consult the latest guidance for Local Government candidates issued by the Electoral Commission and you should read the contents of the nomination pack issued by the Returning Officer at Ashfield District Council before an election for greater detail.

Full details can be found on the Electoral Commission website.

To qualify to be a candidate for a Local Government election, on the day of nomination and on the day of the election you must be:

aged 18 years or above
a British citizen, a qualifying citizen of a commonwealth country, a citizen of the Irish Republic, or a citizen of another member state of the European Union

In addition, you must also meet at least one of the following on the day of nomination and the day of the election:

be registered as a local government elector for the area of the council or parish
be an owner or tenant of any land or premises in the area during the whole of 12 months before the day of nomination
the only place of work during the last 12 months has been in the area
they have lived in the area during the whole of the last 12 months (and for parish councils only "or within 4.8km of it")

You cannot stand for election if:

you are employed by the local authority or hold paid office under the authority (including joint boards or committees)
subject of a bankruptcy restrictions order
been sentenced to a term of imprisonment of three months or more (including a suspended sentence) without the option of a fine during five years before an election
been disqualified under the Representation of People Act or under the Audit Commission Act 1998
politically restricted post holder
guilty of corruption or illegal practices by the election court

If you have any queries, or wish to inform us that you would like to stand as a candidate at an election, please contact the elections unit on 01623 457321.