Your guide to the Northants PFCC election in May

Elections for a Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner in Northamptonshire will take place in May

Public elections for the Northamptonshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (PFCC) will take place in May.

A PFCC is not a serving member of the police force, but they are elected to hold police and fire services to account.

The PFCC is able to hire and dismiss the chief constable and chief fire officer and set the budgets.

They are elected for four-year terms, although due to the Covid pandemic the last election was delayed by a year and was held in 2021.

How do I vote in the election?

Anyone in Northamptonshire over the age of 18 on the day of the election is eligible to vote, but you must be registered to vote.

Anyone over the age of 16 can register to vote online here. You will need to register again if you have changed your name, address or nationality.

Once you are registered you have a few options on how to vote - you can vote in person at a polling station on 2 May, by post or by proxy.

If you wish to submit a postal vote, you must apply by 17:00 BST on 17 April.

A proxy vote, which means someone else can vote on your behalf, must be applied for by 17:00 on 24 April.

You can request a proxy vote for reasons such as being away on polling day or being registered as an overseas voter. The proxy must be someone you trust to vote on your behalf and you will need to tell them which candidate you want to vote for.

They can still cast their own vote as well.

Everyone will need to show photo ID at polling stations before they vote.

How does the election process work?

On election day you can cast one vote.

The voting system for the PFCC has changed this year.

Previously you would list a first and second preference candidate, but in this election, the first-past-the-post system (as used when electing MPs) will be used meaning you can only vote for one candidate and whoever has the most votes will win.

Who are the candidates running for PFCC?

Stephen Mold, the Conservative PFCC for Northamptonshire has announced he will not stand for re-election to the post after making misogynistic comments.

In a statement, he said he had made a "significant mistake" and had decided to "do the right thing". He added he would stay in post until May's election.

Mr Mold was elected to the post in 2016 and re-elected in 2021.

The fire service element of the job came into effect in 2019. Before then the post had just been as a police and crime commissioner (PCC), a separation many other counties still maintain.

The Conservatives are expected to announce their candidate soon. Labour and Liberal Democrats have both announced their candidates.

The deadline for candidates to apply is 5 April.

All candidates will need a deposit of £5,000 which is returned to them after the election if they poll more than 5% of the vote.

In the last PFCC election in 2021, four candidates stood.

What important deadlines and key dates should I be aware of?

• The official candidate list will be published no later than 5 April

• Last day for registering to vote is 16 April

• If you want to vote by post you must apply by 17 April

• For proxy votes the deadline to apply is 24 April

• Polling stations are open on 2 May between 07:00 and 22:00 BST

When will we find out who has won?

The verification of ballot papers will take place overnight and on the morning of Friday, 3 May. The votes will be counted later that day.

The result will be announced at Benham Sports Centre in Northampton on that Friday.