Published on Thursday 07 May 2026
Polls are now open for the town council elections in Bournemouth, Broadstone and Poole.
More than 130 polling stations opened their doors at 7am this morning (Thursday 7 May) and will welcome voters until 10pm tonight.
A total of 50 town councillors will be elected to the three new councils. Each will be a separate tier of local government under BCP Council. They will have responsibility for their own budgets.
Bournemouth and Poole town councils will each have 21 councillors. Broadstone Town Council will have eight councillors.
Registered voters can find their polling station by visiting www.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/polling-station.
Residents must bring an accepted form of photo ID – such as a passport, driving licence, Blue Badge or Voter Authority Certificate – to be able to vote.
A full list of accepted ID is available at www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id.
Residents can also show expired ID if they are still recognisable from the photo.
The verification and counting of results will take place from 10am tomorrow (Friday 8 May).
Results will be announced on the BCP Council’s social media pages and website.
More information of the elections can be found at www.bcpcouncil.gov.uk/elections-2026.