Standing as a candidate

District Council Elections

Nomination Papers

Every candidate must submit a Nomination Paper. This must be signed by two local government electors for the ward in which you wish to stand; a proposer and a seconder. The Nomination Paper must be delivered before the date given on the Notice of Election.

Consent to Nomination

Your nomination is not valid unless you submit a Consent to Nomination. You must sign a declaration to the effect that you accept the nomination proposed by others and that at the time of nomination you are qualified to stand, and the form must be attested by a witness.

There are no formal qualifications needed to become a councillor. However, to stand validly nominated you must fulfil a number of legal requirements:

Legal Requirements

To be qualified to become a candidate for election as a District Councillor, you must be:

18 years of age or over at the date of nomination, a commonwealth citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Ireland or a citizen of another Member State of the European Union, and be registered to vote in the Derbyshire Dales or have worked in the area for the last 12 months or have occupied land as an owner or tenant within the district of Derbyshire Dales for the last 12 months

You cannot stand as a candidate if

  • you are bankrupt
  • you have been sentenced to imprisonment of 3 months in the last 5 years or
  • if you work for Derbyshire Dales District Council or the Peak District National Park Authority

(Please Note - that the above is only a general statement of the qualifications and disqualifications for holding office and you are advised to check the details further. These can be found printed in full on the Consent to Nomination form)

Parish Council Local Elections

Nomination paper

Every candidate must submit a Nomination Paper. This must be signed by two local government electors for the parish in which you wish to stand; a proposer and a seconder. The Nomination Paper must be delivered before the date given on the Notice of Election.

Consent to Nomination

Your nomination is not valid unless you submit a Consent to Nomination. You must sign a declaration to the effect that you accept the nomination proposed by others and that at the time of nomination you are qualified to stand, and the form must be attested by a witness.

There are no formal qualifications needed to become a councillor. However, to stand validly nominated you must fulfil a number of legal requirements:

Legal Requirements

To be qualified to become a candidate for election as a Parish Councillor, you must be:

  • 18 years of age or over at the date of nomination
  • a commonwealth citizen, a citizen of the Republic of Ireland or a citizen of another Member State of the European Union,
  • and be registered to vote the parish you seek to represent
  • or have resided in the Parish or within 3 miles (4.8km) of it during the previous 12 months
  • or have lived, worked or occupied land as an owner or tenant within the Parish for the previous 12 months

You cannot stand as a candidate if

  • you are bankrupt or
  • if you have been sentenced to imprisonment of 3 months in the last 5 years

(Please Note that the above is only a general statement of the qualifications and disqualifications for holding office and you are advised to check the details further. These can be found printed in full on the Consent to Nomination form)

Information on other websites

Electoral Commission - for information about all electoral matters

Electoral Commission: Standing for local government elections - for specific information about standing as a candidate

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