This is why most of South Ribble cannot vote in this year's local elections - and the one area of Leyland that can

Voters are heading to the polls across various parts of Lancashire on Thursday (5th May) for this year’s local elections.
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However, there are several district councils where there is no borough-wide poll this year – and South Ribble is one of them.

It has left some of the district’s residents wondering why they are not getting to have their say at the ballot box.

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The answer is simple – South Ribble Borough Council stages elections only once every four years.

Just one ward in South Ribble will see an eelction staged this weekJust one ward in South Ribble will see an eelction staged this week
Just one ward in South Ribble will see an eelction staged this week

Unlike its Central Lancashire neighbours in Preston and Chorley, South Ribble elects its entire 50-strong membership in one go. It last did so back in 2019, meaning that people will not be invited to the polls again until May 2023.

The exception is for residents in the Earnshaw Bridge ward, where a by-election is being held on Thursday to elect a replacement for long-serving councillor Bill Evans, who passed away back in March. Locals in that ward will get to vote for a new representative who will be in place for the next 12 months.

The three candidates contesting Earnshaw Bridge are:

Lou Jackson – Labour Party

Craige Southern – Conservative Party

Simon Thomson – Liberal Democrats

The polls are open between 7am and 10pm on Thursday. You do not need to take your polling card with you to vote - and can instead just give in your name and address.

Lancashire County Council elected its membership for the next four years back in 2021, so there will be no fresh vote for county representatives until 2025.