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Cambridge City Council

Elections in 2023

Elections were held on 4 May 2023 for 16 of the 42 seats on Cambridge City Council.

Each of the city’s 14 wards elected one councillor, and there were by-elections in Castle and Coleridge. Another by-election was held for the Arbury division of the county council.

A by-election for a seat in King’s Hedges ward was held on 4 July 2023.

Scroll down to see the results of the May elections, the King's Hedges ward by-election, and statistics for the new voter ID process.

Queen Edith’s ward by-election on 23 November

A vacancy occurred for a city councillor in Queen Edith’s ward, following the resignation of Cllr Sam Davies. An election was held to fill the vacancy on Thursday 23 November 2023.

Important deadlines

  • Register to vote by 11:59pm on Tuesday 7 November.
  • Apply for a postal vote or postal proxy vote by 5pm on Wednesday 8 November.
  • Make changes to an existing postal vote or proxy vote by 5pm on Wednesday 8 November.
  • Apply for a proxy vote by 5pm on Wednesday 15 November.
  • Apply for a Voter Authority Certificate by 5pm on Wednesday 15 November.
  • Polling day will be on Thursday 23 November. Polls will be open from 7am until 10pm.

King’s Hedges ward by-election on 4 July

A vacancy has occurred for a city councillor in King’s Hedges ward, following a resignation. A by-election took place on Tuesday 4 July 2023.

Elections on 4 May

Elections were held on Thursday 4 May 2023 for 14 of the 42 seats on Cambridge City Council. Every ward elected one councillor to represent them for the next four years.

By-elections were also held in Castle and Coleridge – two councillors were elected in these wards. And an election was held for a county councillor for the Arbury division.

At these elections, you needed to provide photographic identification before you could vote at a polling station. Read our voter ID page to learn more.

Voter ID statistics

A total of 89,574 electors were registered to vote on 4 May, of whom 75,546 were eligible to vote in a polling station. 13,865 people were issued with a postal vote and 163 people appointed a proxy to vote on their behalf.

35,162 ballot papers were included in the count, which is a turnout of 39.3%.

Information that can be released on the new voter ID process in polling stations is as follows:

  • Electors who applied for a ballot paper but were refused because they had no ID or the wrong type of ID: 302 (100%)
  • Number of those electors who later returned with correct ID and were able to vote: 176 (58.3%)
  • Number of electors who did not return, and so were unable to vote: 126 (41.7%)

Official notices

Eligibility to vote

You could vote at these elections if you are:

  • a British, Irish, qualifying commonwealth or a European Union citizen
  • registered to vote in Cambridge
  • aged 18 or over on the day of the elections

All EU citizens could vote at these elections, even though the UK has left the EU.

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