Local council elections 2026

Who can vote

To vote in the local council elections in Islington, you must be:

• registered to vote before Monday 20 April
• 18 or over on the day of the election (polling day)
• a British, Irish, Commonwealth, qualifying EU citizen or EU citizen with Retained Rights
• living at an address in Islington most of the time

If you are not sure if you are registered to vote in Islington, email electoral.services@islington.gov.uk and we will find out for you.

How to vote

To vote in the local council elections on 7 May 2026, you must be registered to vote before Monday 20 April. Only people on the electoral roll can vote in person, by post or proxy.

You can:

• vote in person on Thursday 7 May 2026 (polling day) between 7am and 10pm
• vote by post if you have applied for a postal vote before 5pm on Tuesday 21 April 2026 - you will get your postal vote pack around a week before polling day (or later if you apply closer to the deadline)
• vote by proxy (someone who you trust to vote in person for you) if you have applied for a proxy vote before 5pm on Tuesday 28 April 2026 

Bring voter ID

If you are voting in person, you must bring accepted photo ID.

If you do not have the right type of voter ID, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate (VAC).

Find your polling station

Your polling station is on your polling card that you will have received in the post. You can check where your polling station is using your post code. 

Access and help with voting at polling stations for people with disabilities

All polling stations are wheelchair accessible and polling staff are trained to help people with disabilities to vote. 

Here is what we can offer to help you vote when you visit your polling station. If you need something else, contact us as soon as you can before the election and we will assess what we can do to help.

Important dates

• Monday 30 March 2026 - Publication of Notice of Election
• Thursday 9 April 2026 (4pm) - Publication of statement of persons and parties nominated, notice of poll and situation of polling stations
• Monday 20 April 2026 (midnight) - Deadline to register to vote
• Tuesday 21 April 2026 (5pm) -
  • Deadline to register for a postal vote
• Tuesday 28 April 2026 (5pm)
  • Deadline to register a proxy vote
  • Deadline to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate
• Thursday 7 May 2026 - Day of election (polling day - 7am to 10pm)

This information is for:

• anyone who wants to stand as a candidate
• election agents

Standing as a candidate

You can stand as a candidate in the local council elections on Thursday 7 May 2026 either for a registered political party or as an independent candidate. Find out more on the Electoral Commission Candidates and Agents Guidance.

Candidates must send to the Returning Officer:

• completed nomination and nomination consent form which you can get from the Returning Officer
• certificate of authorisation from the registered political party’s nominating officer (if standing as the candidate for a political party)
• a signed request to use a registered political party’s emblem on the ballot paper (if you are using one)

Download a nomination pack from the Electoral Commission website.

Returning your nomination papers

You must hand deliver your nomination papers to:

The Returning Officer
Town Hall
Upper Street
London, N1 2UD

You can do this on any working day between 10am and 4pm except bank holidays:

• after we have published the Notice of Election on Monday 30 March 2026
• before 4pm on Thursday 9 April 2026

Contact electoral.services@islington.gov.uk to make an appointment before handing in your papers.

Attend a briefing

We are holding a briefing on Monday 23 March 2026 for anyone who wants to stand as a candidate. Email electoral.services@islington.gov.uk and let us know you want to attend.

Apply for media accreditation

Accreditation will close on Friday 17 April. We will contact members of the media who have applied after that.

Apply to cover local council election count 

We cannot guarantee we will be able to accredit everyone who applies because of numbers of persons allowed in and around the building.

The Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission is the independent body that oversees elections and regulates political finance in the UK.