A guide to Wiltshire's elections 2025

Voters are about to decide who runs one of the largest councils in southern England.

All of Wiltshire Council's 98 seats are up for grabs on 1 May, alongside 308 seats on the county's smaller parish and town councils, including in Salisbury.

Since its creation in 2009, Wiltshire Council has been dominated by comfortable Conservative majorities, but the main parties are anticipating a tighter race this year.

With so many positions available, Wiltshire is thought to have the highest number of individual elections of any county in England in 2025.

Wiltshire Council is a unitary authority, created by merging the former county and district councils into one large organisation in 2009.

That means one body is in charge of a range of local services, including caring for the most vulnerable - both old and young - as well as bin collections.

It is also responsible for road maintenance, running libraries and leisure centres, coordinating environmental and public health, and planning education provision.

But after shifting some responsibilities onto the super-local town and parish councils, it generally is no longer in charge of parks, public loos and playgrounds.

This is a council which since its creation has been dominated by the Conservatives - known as a Tory stronghold.

But, key players all expect a much closer race this year in Wiltshire.

The Liberal Democrats sniff an opportunity to take control for the very first time, after a strong Wiltshire showing in the 2024 general election, and before that taking control of neighbouring Somerset.

But the Conservatives will fight hard defending a council they believe has been a real success story for them, avoiding anything like the scale of cutbacks seen elsewhere.

Labour previously has returned a very small number of Wiltshire councillors, with some parts of the county consistently electing independents.

Reform UK - not previously a political force here - are promising to fight every seat, and has seen two previous Tory councillors switch sides.

The Green Party meanwhile is focusing its resources on getting a representative onto the council for the very first time.

That question of course depends on who you ask - ultimately every voter has to decide the answer for themselves.

Some use local elections as a way to make their feelings known about national agendas.

But for those out campaigning on a local level, one thing keeps coming up: potholes.

Controversial housing developments, infrastructure, and lack of access especially to health services are also topics that steer elections.

How much power - and, more importantly, money - local councillors have to make a noticeable change to any of those issues is a question they'll have to grapple with.

But it's a reminder how important local issues are to voters.

And for all the grumblings about annually rising council tax bills, there is an irony that the area most of that is spent on - supporting vulnerable adults and children - doesn't get banded around as an election issue.

Polling day is Thursday 1 May, with ballots either cast on the day at a polling station, or sent in advance by post.

Official ID like a passport, drivers' licence, older person's bus pass, or a veteran's card will need to be shown at the polling station in order to be given your ballot paper.

Only residents registered to vote can take part - the deadline for getting on that register is Friday 11 April.

The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 17:00 BST on Monday 14 April.

Residents who are British or Irish citizens, or who have permission to remain in the UK, are eligible to vote so long as they are aged 18 or over on 1st May.

The ballot papers from all 359 polling stations will then be sent to one of three venues to be counted the following day, in Trowbridge, Salisbury and Chippenham.

We expect to know the full set of results late afternoon or early evening on Friday 2 May.

There are no elections for Swindon Borough Council this year.

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