Voters urged to take part in local elections on Thursday

Voters in Leeds are encouraged to make their mark by taking part in the Leeds City Council and regional elections this week.

Polling stations across Leeds will be open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday 2 May for everyone registered who has not already voted by post to support their candidates for Leeds City Council as well as for the regional Mayor of West Yorkshire. Anyone unsure of where their polling station is can find out here.

Everyone voting in person on Thursday is reminded of the need to remember to take their accepted form of photo ID with them to the polling station, which will be checked on arrival. To see the list of accepted forms of ID visit this website. Voters will be able to use expired ID if they are still recognisable from the photo.  

Anyone wishing to hand in a postal vote rather than returning it in the post via Royal Mail needs to be aware of the following rules changes:

• Completed postal vote packs can only be handed in at a polling station or at the electoral services office at Leeds Civic Hall, LS1 1UR. No other council offices will be able to accept votes.
• Anyone handing in a postal vote on behalf of themselves or other people will be required to fill in a form, giving their name and address, how many postal votes they are handing in and why they are being handed in rather than returned by post. Polling station and council staff will be able to help with this process.
• If handing in postal votes on behalf of other people, this is now limited to the person handing the votes in along with up to five other votes – so a maximum of six.

For more information on completing and returning postal vote packs, click here.

Anyone who has not yet received their postal ballot pack should inform the elections team on 0113 222 4411 or e-mail electors@leeds.gov.uk to arrange a replacement, which can be issued up to 5pm on polling day.

The election counts will take place at the John Charles Centre for Sport with the Leeds City Council count during the day on Friday, 3 May and the count for Mayor of West Yorkshire on Saturday, 4 May.

Elections Returning Officer and chief executive of Leeds City Council Tom Riordan said: “We would encourage people in Leeds to help shape the future of the city and the region by taking part in this week’s elections. Please remember to take an accepted form of photo ID with you to the polling station, as without it you will not be allowed to vote.”

Check out the profiles of candidates standing in the six wards in West Leeds by following the link below:

The list of candidates’ names standing for election in all 33 Leeds City Council wards can also be seen at Leeds City Council Election while the candidates for Mayor of West Yorkshire can be seen here.

More information on the role of the Mayor of West Yorkshire can be seen here.

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