Standing for election

Thinking of becoming a councillor ? Here is some information on who can stand for election and the process to go through to stand for election.

Who can stand for election?

To stand for election, on the day of nomination you must be:

a) 18 years of age or over;

b) and a British, Commonwealth or European Union citizen;

c) and you also have to meet at least one of the following:

be registered to vote on the Crawley Borough Council’s current electoral register;
have occupied as owner or tenant any land or other premises in Crawley during the whole of the 12 months preceding the day that you are nominated;
have during that same period had your principal or only place of work in the council area;
during that 12 month period resided in the council area.

You cannot stand at election if you:

a) work for Crawley Borough Council (including joint boards or Committees); or

b) are subject of a bankruptcy restriction order or interim order; or

c) have, within five years before the day of the election, been convicted in the United Kingdom of any offence and have had a sentence of imprisonment (whether suspended or not) for a period of over three months without the option of a fine.

d) hold a politically restricted post for any local authority.

How do I stand for election?

Candidates may represent a political party or stand as an independent. The majority of people become councillors as a result of having joined a political party. Some people may stand for election as an independent (i.e. candidate who does not belong to any political party) or pressure groups (e.g. a Residents or Ratepayers Association).

A deposit is not needed for local government elections.

The Electoral Commission’s website contains information for prospective candidates on all elections www.electoralcommission.org.uk

Standing as a member of a political party

If you wish to stand as a candidate for a political party you will need to be a Member of that specific party and their local organisation. You can only stand as a representative of a registered political party if you are their authorised candidate – so you will need to contact them. The parties currently or recently represented on the Council and their respective local and national party organisations and contact details are:

Conservative Party

Crawley BC Group Leader: Councillor Bob Lanzer

www.conservatives.com

www.crawleyconservatives.org.uk

Labour Party

Crawley BC Group Leader: Councillor Peter Lamb

www.labour.org.uk

www.crawleylabour.org.uk

Local and/or national websites for other political parties

www.libdems.org.uk

http://crawley-libdems.org.uk/en/

http://www.greenparty.org.uk/region/southeast/MidSussexCrawleyHorshamGP.html

http://www.ukipcrawley.org

More information on the above political parties, and any others you are interested in, is also contained in the Register of Political Parties available on the Electoral Commission’s website www.electoralcommission.org.uk

Standing as an independent councillor

If you are not a member of a political party and wish to stand as an independent candidate, further information and advice may be obtained from the Independent Group at the Local Government Association (including the “Handy Hints” guide it produced for independent councillors and candidates which is also available at www.picx.co.uk ) at:

Local Government House

Smith Square

London SW1P 3HZ

Tel: 020 7664 3224

Email:

Website: www.lga.gov.uk

Elections and Nominations

The elections to Crawley Borough Council are held three out of every four years and so one third of Crawley councillors are elected each year. In the fourth year elections to West Sussex County Council take place. Click on the link for details of upcoming elections .

Councillors are elected by residents in their ward and serve for a period of four years unless they are elected at a by-election, in which case they serve the remainder of the term. After their term of office a Councillor may retire or seek re-election. They can also choose to retire or resign at any time.

Elections are conducted with rules laid done by law that ensure that the process is free and fair. The law sets out a timetable and in order to stand for election you need to submit a set of forms to the Returning Officer at the Town Hall by the deadline for nominations at the election.

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