Five candidates stand in the Brighton by-election on 24 September. Register to vote by 8 September and apply for a postal vote by 5pm on 9 September.
Five candidates are standing in the Queen’s Park by-election in Brighton on Thursday 24 September, and the first deadline for voters falls a week on Tuesday. The statement of persons nominated was published by the returning officer, Jess Gibbons, on 27 August.
The seat fell vacant when Councillor Milla Gauge resigned. The council issued its notice of vacancy on 11 August.
Who is standing
In the order they appear on the ballot paper, with the descriptions they gave on their nomination papers:
| Candidate | Description |
|---|---|
| Rudi Dikty-Daudiyan | Liberal Democrats |
| Steve Gladwin | Labour Party |
| John Shepherd | Reform UK |
| Stefan Sönke Speckesser | Conservative and Unionist Party |
| Mark Strong | Green Party |
All five give an address in Brighton & Hove.
The dates you need
Polls open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday 24 September. Ballot papers are counted the following day, Friday 25 September.
Before that, the council’s by-election page sets out these deadlines:
- Tuesday 8 September: last day to register to vote
- Wednesday 9 September, 5pm: last day for a postal vote application, or to cancel one
- Wednesday 9 September, 5pm: last day for a proxy application if you or your proxy already have a postal vote
- Friday 11 September: postal votes are sent out
- Wednesday 16 September, 5pm: last day for any other proxy application
- Wednesday 16 September, 5pm: last day to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate
- Friday 18 September: replacement postal votes can start to be reissued
To vote you have to be registered in Queen’s Park ward by 8 September, or be a registered Crown servant or service elector for an address in the ward, and be 18 or over on polling day.
Photo ID, and the free way round it
You need photo identification to vote in person. If you do not have an accepted form of ID, the free Voter Authority Certificate is the answer, and 16 September at 5pm is the last moment to apply for one.
Postal voters need no ID at all. That deadline is a week earlier, 5pm on 9 September.
The four polling stations
The notice of poll lists four stations for the ward:
| Station | Where |
|---|---|
| 1 | The Vale Community Centre, 17A Hadlow Close, Brighton |
| 2 | St Luke’s Church, Queen’s Park Road, Brighton |
| 3 | Barnard Community Centre, St John’s Mount, Mount Pleasant |
| 4 | Millwood Community Centre, Nelson Row, Carlton Hill |
Your poll card tells you which one is yours. You can vote without the card, but not without ID.
What it means for you
One seat is being filled, and it will not change who runs the city. The council’s own register of members currently shows 53 sitting councillors: Labour 31, Green 11, Conservative 5, four independents and two from Brighton & Hove Independents. Labour has an outright majority whatever happens on 24 September.
What the result does decide is who represents Queen’s Park alongside Councillor Marina Lademacher, and who carries ward casework on the things residents actually contact councillors about: parking, planning, housing and rubbish.
If you have moved house since the last election, or turned 18 this year, 8 September is the date that matters. Registering takes a few minutes online.
While you are checking council business, our local information pages cover bin collection days, council tax bands and parking in Brighton.
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