Standing for election

To become a councillor you must stand for local election and win. To stand as a candidate you need to be nominated and declare that you accept the nomination. Your local district or borough elections office will be able to tell you how to get nominated.

The next scheduled election for East Sussex County Council is in May 2013.

Who can stand for election

All candidates for local election must be:

  • at least 18 years old, and
  • a British citizen, or a citizen of another Commonwealth country, the Republic of Ireland or another member state of the European Union.

You must also meet at least one of the following criteria on polling day, and for 12 months before that.

  • You are registered as a local government elector for the local authority area in which you wish to stand.
  • You own or are the tenant of any land or premises in the local authority area.
  • Your main or only place of work has been in the local authority area.
  • You have lived in the local authority area.

The majority of local councillors belong to a political party but you can also stand as an independent councillor.

Who can't stand for election

You cannot stand as a councillor if you:

  • are employed as an officer by the local authority, or hold a politically restricted post with another council.
  • are bankrupt
  • have been sentenced to prison for three months or more (including a suspended sentence) during the five years before election day
  • have been disqualified under Part III of the Representation of the People act 1983 or under the Audit Commission Act 1998.

Advice from the Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission provides a lot of useful information about standing in a local election.

If I'm elected, what support will I get?

As a new councillor, you will take part in an induction programme to give you the information you need to understand how the Council works. We will assess your training needs and provide you with a training programme during your term of office.

We've held the South East Employers Elected Member Development Charter since January 2007. This recognises our robust framework and commitment to providing training and development opportunities to all our councillors.

All council officers are there to support you and offer guidance whenever they can. You will be offered a member mentor and officer buddy to help guide you around the Council.