Guidance for Returning Officers administering a Senedd election

All party list and individual candidates must formally consent to their nomination and deliver their consent by the deadline for delivery of nomination papers, which is 4pm, 19 working days before the poll.1
  
A candidate’s consent to nomination must be in the prescribed form in English or Welsh.2 You may accept delivery of the consent to nomination by hand to one of the places specified in the notice of election or via the arrangements set out in the electronic delivery statement.3

The candidate’s consent must form must include:4

• the candidate’s date of birth
• an address within the relevant area,5 that will be deemed as the candidate’s office in the event they become their own agent if none is appointed. The relevant area is the constituency or an adjoining constituency or in a county or county borough which is partly comprised in or adjoins the constituency
• the name of a local authority area in Wales in which the candidate is registered as a local government elector
• a statement that to the best of their knowledge and belief they are not disqualified under section 16(A1) of the 2006 Government of Wales Act from being a Member of the Senedd
• a statement of party membership
• in the case of an individual candidate a statement that that they are not, for a Senedd election held on the same day:
  • a party list candidate in the same Senedd constituency
  • an individual candidate in any other Senedd constituency
  • a party list candidate in any other Senedd constituency
• in the case of a candidate on a registered party’s list a statement that they are not, for a Senedd election held on the same day:
  • an individual candidate in the same Senedd constituency
  • an individual candidate for any other Senedd constituency
  • a party list candidate in any other Senedd constituency 

The consent must be signed and dated by the candidate and the date must be on or within one month before the last day for the delivery of nomination papers.6
    
If a consent form for a particular candidate on a party list is not received by you by 4pm 19 working days before poll you must remove that person from the party list, but the party’s list nomination is not invalidated.7

Signature of a witness

The candidate’s consent to nomination must also be attested by a witness.8 The witness should be present when the candidate signs their declaration. There are no restrictions on who can be a witness.  

For consents delivered electronically, an electronic signature could take the form of a typed name in the space for a signature for example.