You must fix the date of a by election to fill a casual vacancy, the timing of which will depend on whether the vacancy was caused by:1
a declaration by the High Court or the local authority (e.g. as a result of failure to accept office or attend meetings, or becoming disqualified) or
any other reason (e.g. as a result of death or resignation)
If a seat has been declared vacant by the High Court or the local authority, the by-election must, subject to the six-month rule, be held between 25 and 35 working days of the date of the declaration.2
We have produced guidance on the six month rule.
If the vacancy arose due to any other reason e.g. death or resignation, once requests to hold an election have been received, you must set the date for polling day for the by-election within 35 working days of the date of receipt of the requests.3
Parish council elections
Where a casual vacancy has occurred due to death or resignation a by-election can only be held if requests to hold an election are made:
within 14 working days of the publication of the notice of vacancy and
by ten electors, whether together, separately, or a combination of the two, in the electoral area (i.e. the parish, or from the ward if the parish is warded)
If this is not the case, the casual vacancy must be filled by co-option rather than a by-election.4
Upon receipt of a valid request to hold an election, you must fix a date for polling day, within 60 working days from the date of the notice of vacancy.
Election timetable
We have produced a generic timetable for local government by-elections which you can use as the basis for preparing the timetable for a specific by-election.