County council elections are being held on Thursday 1 May 2025 and residents will be able to elect councillors for all 64 seats for the first time in 4 years.
The election will decide who runs the council and represents an estimated 811,500 people living in the county up to 2029.
Since the last county council election in 2021 new boundaries have been introduced by The Local Government Boundary Commission and most people will see a change in the area and name of their usual division (sometimes referred to as a ward). There is now just one councillor for each division, whereas historically 3 Derbyshire divisions have had 2 councillors. Find out more about the new electoral divisions.
There are more than 629,570 eligible voters in Derbyshire and people who want to vote on 1 May should check if they’re registered to vote now. They can do so by visiting their local district or borough council website, as these councils are responsible for administering our election at a local level on our behalf.
If residents are not registered to vote they must do so before midnight (by 11.59pm) on Friday 11 April 2025. Residents who are not registered to vote by this time will not be able to cast their vote on election day.
People can wrongly assume they are registered to vote when they are not for a number of reasons including moving house and assuming they are automatically registered at their new address because they pay council tax. However, the 2 processes are separate and registering to pay council tax does not mean people are automatically on the electoral register.
Residents who have turned 18 since the last election in their area may not realise that this is their chance to vote for the first time and may not be registered.
As well as going in person to a polling station, there are other ways that people can vote, including by post or by proxy (where a person can nominate someone to vote on their behalf), but they must still be registered to vote even if using either of these methods.
The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on Monday 14 April 2025 and to apply for a vote by proxy the deadline is 5pm Wednesday 23 April 2025.
To vote in England, you now need to show photo ID to vote at polling stations and people can find out here what is an accepted form of photo ID.
Those without up-to-date or accepted photo ID can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate to use as ID, and they should apply for this by 5pm on Wednesday 23 April 2025.
There is also an opportunity for people to apply for an emergency proxy vote which can be granted in certain circumstances and applied for by contacting the relevant district or borough council where the person lives up until 5pm on polling day.
Find more voting information from us or voting information from the government.
Derbyshire County Council Managing Director Emma Alexander said:
“Everyone uses services provided by Derbyshire County Council, whether they realise it or not.
“It could be roads, schools, home care for older or vulnerable people, libraries or waste disposal. That’s why it’s so important for all residents who are eligible to vote to do so and have their say in how Derbyshire is run and how their money is spent.’’
Nominations for candidates standing in the election close on Wednesday 2 April 2025 and a full list of all candidates standing will be published on our website by close of play on Thursday 3 April 2025.
On Thursday 1 May 2025 polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm and people who are registered should receive polling cards before the election. Polling cards will tell them where to vote, which may not necessarily be in the same venue they went to in the last elections they voted in. Registered voters who do not receive a polling card will still be able to vote.
The votes will be counted on Friday 2 May 2025 with results announced throughout the day on our website.