The 2026 Local Elections

In May, you will be voting to elect your local councillors.

All 72 seats on Sandwell Council are up for election on Thursday 7 May 2026.

Each of Sandwell’s 24 wards has three councillors, meaning you can vote for three candidates. 

Important information for voters

  • Don’t waste your vote – select the three candidates you want to vote for on your ballot paper. You must vote for no more than three candidates.
  • The name of your ward may have changed. This is due to changes in our ward boundaries.
  • Check your poll card if you are voting in person. Your polling station may have changed.
  • If you vote in person at a polling station, you must take valid photographic ID. If you don’t have a valid form of photographic ID, you can apply for some free photographic ID called a Voter Authority Certificate.
  • If you’re not registered to vote, you can’t vote. The deadline for registering to vote is Monday 20 April. Register to vote.
  • If you want to vote by post, you have until 5pm on Tuesday 21 April 2026 to apply for a Postal Vote. Postal Votes now last for up to three years.
  • If you’ve previously voted by post, and you applied for a Postal Vote before 30 January 2024, you need to renew it if you want to vote by post in future elections. If you need to renew your Postal Vote, we have written to you.
  • Postal Votes will start being delivered from two weeks before the Local Elections. Find out more about Postal Votes.
  • If you’re voting at a polling station, they are open from 7am until 10pm on polling day (7 May).
  • Votes will be counted on Friday 8 May and results of the election will be published here on the council website as they are declared.

In a whole council election, the three candidates who receive the most votes are elected. Those candidates are elected for different terms:

  • The first place candidate will be a councillor for four years.
  • The second place candidate will be a councillor for two years.
  • The third place candidate will be a councillor for one year.

This is because future elections will happen in three of every four years. The next Local Elections will take place in 2027, 2028 and 2030.