Derbyshire voters set for polls as Local Elections may affect next General Election

Voters will be making their mark on Derbyshire’s political landscape this Thursday, May 4, during the Local Elections when they head to the polling booths across the county.

Here is a breakdown with six key local authority areas affecting our readership as people are set to go to the polls to vote for candidates looking to either keep their existing seats for another four-year term or for others looking to take over and step into the breach. Labour-led Chesterfield Borough Council – which currently has 48 councillors including 29 Labour seats, 17 Liberal Democrats and two independents – is to be reduced from 48 council seats across 19 wards to 40 council seats across 16 wards. There will also be a Staveley Town Council local election for voters in Staveley to consider but Brimington Parish Council will remain uncontested. Conservative-led NE Derbyshire District Council currently has 53 seats across 24 wards – including 26 Conservative seats, 18 Labour councillors, six Independents, and three Liberal Democrats. NE Derbyshire will also be holding parish council elections. Labour-led Bolsover District Council currently has 37 councillors representing 17 wards with 20 Labour seats, nine Independents, three Conservative seats, three Community Independents, and one non-aligned Independent. Bolsover District will also be holding parish council elections with 32 parish seats for relevant voters to consider. The largest district council in Derbyshire, Conservative-led Amber Valley Borough Council, boasts 45 councillors representing 23 wards. It currently has 25 Conservative councillors, nine Labour councillors, five Independents, three Green Party councillors, two Belper Independents, and one Socialist councillor. Conservative-led Derbyshire Dales District Council has 39 district councillors elected in 25 wards including 17 Conservative seats, seven Liberal Democrats, four Labour councillors, three Green/Independent seats, and one Social Democrat, and five Independent councillors, and two vacant seats. Tightly-contested High Peak Borough Council currently has 16 Conservative seats, 15 Labour seats, three Liberal Democrats, two Green Party seats, and one Independent. The Local Elections are expected to have a significant impact on the national political landscape with polling predictions suggesting the Conservatives could lose up to 1,000 seats nationwide with concerns over inflation, the cost of living crisis and high-energy costs. Nationally, opposition Leader Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party is currently leading in approval polls ahead of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party and if Local Election polling predictions prove to be accurate they could further dent the Conservative Party’s prospects at a pending General Election. Those who wish to vote in person including those acting as a proxy on behalf of someone else will need to produce acceptable photographic ID at polling stations to confirm their identity before they can be issued with a ballot paper.

Conservative-led Derbyshire County Council’s next Local Election will take place in May, 2025, and the county council will therefore not be taking part in Thursday’s 2023 Local Elections but the local authority will no doubt be keeping a keen eye on results at other local authorities as they come in.