Local Elections 2010
The next Local Government Elections and Mayor for Hackney Election will be held on the 6th May 2010. Below you will find information about the elections and how the voting systems for them work.
Local Elections
Who am I voting for?
You are voting for councillors for your local area, or 'ward'. There are 19 wards within Hackney, each represented by 3 councillors.
In total, there are 388 local councils in England and about 20,000 councillors.
Voting system
The voting system for electing Councillors at Local Government Elections is ‘first past the post’.
To vote under first past the post, the voter simply puts a cross in a box next to one candidate. Because each ward in Hackney has 3 councillors, the candidate with the most votes is elected first, then the candidate with the second-highest number of votes, then the third-placed candidate.
If there is a tie, then a candidate is selected by the drawing of lots (i.e. a method of selection by chance such as tossing a coin or picking a name out of a hat). This is conducted by the returning officer.
Can I become a Councillor?
Anyone is entitled to stand as a candidate provided they meet certain eligibility criteria. Find out how to become a councillor.
Electing a Mayor for the council
Who am I voting for?
You are voting to elect a Mayor for Hackney Council.
All local councils in England have a Mayor. Most are chosen by the council – however, in some areas, such as Hackney, the Mayor is directly elected by the voters at the same time as they vote for their councillors.
Voting system
The 'supplementary vote' system is used to elect the Mayor.
With the supplementary vote, there are two columns on the ballot paper - one for the first choice and one for the second choice. Voters are not required to make a second choice if they do not wish to. Voters mark an 'X' in the first column for their first choice and a second 'X' in the second column for their other choice.
Voters' first preferences are counted and if one candidate gets 50% of the vote, then he or she is elected. If no candidate reaches 50% of the vote, the two highest scoring candidates are retained and the rest of the candidates are eliminated.
The second preferences on the ballot papers of the eliminated candidates are examined and any that have been cast for the two remaining candidates are given to them. Whoever has the most votes at the end of the process wins.
Page updated: 3 Sep 2009