Voters are heading to the polls in parts of England to elect thousands of councillors against the backdrop of the biggest local government reorganisation (LGR) programme ‘for a generation.’
Around a third of voters in England will be voting for six directly elected mayors and 1,641 councillors sitting on 14 county councils, eight unitary authorities, and one metropolitan district.
There is also a by-election in Runcorn and Helsby which is being held following the resignation of former Labour MP Mike Amesbury.
Simon Edwards, chief executive of the County Councils Network, said that while much of the focus in the run up to these elections has been on national politics, today’s vote will have a ‘significant impact’ on the lives of 16 million people living in the county areas.
Writing for LocalGov, Dr Jonathan Carr-West of the Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) commented: ‘These elections are set against a backdrop of the biggest local government reorganisation (LGR) and devolution programme for a generation.’
He continued: ‘There will be a lot of focus on what the results tell us about the changing political landscape, with particular attention paid to the mayoral elections and the fortunes of Reform. But what the elections also provide are lessons about how residents view the institution of local government, which are crucial when considering the creation of the proposed new structures.’
Read Dr Jonathan Carr-West's full article, Local elections in the shadow of reorganisation, here.
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