Standing as a councillor
How do I stand for election as a councillor?
To become a councillor, you will have to stand as a candidate at the local elections. Although most candidates are affiliated to political parties, not all are. You can stand as an independent candidate if you wish to.
Qualifications
To qualify as a candidate for elections to a local authority, a person must be at least 18 years old on the day of nomination and must be either:
- a British citizen
- a citizen of the Republic of Ireland
- a qualifying Commonwealth citizen, or
- a citizen of another Member State of the European Union
A prospective candidate must also meet one of four qualifications:
- be a registered elector for the local authority area, or
- for the whole of the previous twelve months have lived in that area; or
- for the whole of the previous twelve months have occupied, as owner or tenant, any land or premises in that area; or
- for that twelve months have had their principal or only place of work in that area
Disqualifications
There are a range of disqualifications which can prevent a person from standing as candidate at a local election. Further details of such disqualifications are shown on the nomination forms.
Paperwork
Any person wishing to stand as a candidate will need to complete the following paperwork:
- a nomination paper, countersigned by ten registered electors for the ward in which you are standing for election
- a consent to nomination, confirming that you are willing to stand for election and witnessed by one other person
- an appointment of election agent, unless you are taking this role on yourself
If you are a candidate for a registered political party you will also need to submit:
- a certificate of authorisation from the political party
- a request to use the party emblem on the ballot paper
If you wish to receive a set of nomination papers, email elections@enfield.gov.uk.
Parliamentary and London elections
Standing as a candidate at UK Parliamentary and London elections
Eligibility for candidature for these elections varies, although the general criteria are that the candidate must:
- be 18 years of age or over on the day they submit their nomination paper;
- not be disqualified for any reason from standing;
- for UK Parliamentary elections, be a British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizen;
- for London (Mayor and Assembly) elections, be a British, Irish, qualifying Commonwealth or European Union citizen; and
- for London elections, have some connection to the area
In addition, for these types of election, candidates must submit a deposit, which ranges from £500 to £10,000 depending on the election type. The deposit will only be returned if the candidate polls a specified percentage of votes, 2.5% or 5% depending on the election type.
Administration
Who deals with the candidate nominations?
Enfield's Returning Officer deals with nominations for:
- Parliamentary elections for the Edmonton, Enfield North and Enfield Southgate parliamentary constituencies
- Elections to the London Borough of Enfield - there are 13 three-councillor wards and 12 two-councillor wards across the 25 electoral wards of the borough
- Elections of the London Assembly Member for the Enfield and Haringey constituency of the Greater London Assembly
Nominations for the Mayor of London and for the London-wide Assembly Members are administered by the Greater London Returning Officer at City Hall, The Queen's Walk, London, SE1 2AA.
Verification Notice
Verification number
We're required by law to publish how many signatures of registered voters are required on a petition on whether we should change to a different form of governance.
Electors can petition the council to hold a referendum. The petition must be signed by at least 5% of the registered electors for the district. This figure is known as the verification number.
Every year there is a short period when there are two figures that can be used. This is between publication of the number in February and 31 March that same year.
During that time, the alternative number that can be used is the one that was published the previous February. We must use the lower of these two numbers as the Verification Number for any petition submitted during that period.
Verification Number (1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024): 10,722
London Borough of Enfield
The Local Authority (Referendums)
(Petitions and Directions)
(England) Regulations 2000
Publication of Verification Number
In accordance with Regulation 4(1) of the above regulations, the number that is equal to 5% of the number of local government electors shown in the revised register of electors having effect on the 15 February 2023 is:
10,722
This figure will have effect for the purposes of determining the validity of petitions presented from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.
The number equal to 5% of the local government electors for 2024 will be published within 14 days of the 15 February 2024. If this number is less than the previous year, the number to be used for verification purposes in relation to any petition submitted for the period beginning on the date of publication of the lesser number until 31 March 2024, shall also be that lesser number.