Town council by-election to be held in Corby next month

A by-election to determine who will take the vacant seat on Corby Town Council will be held in just over three weeks.

The election will be on Thursday, February 22, one week after the Wellingborough Parliamentary by-election.

The seat has been vacant since former Corby Town councillor and town crier, Anthony Dady, stood down from his role in order to be with family in New Zealand.

Cllr Dady served in his role from the council’s inception in May 2021 to November of last year.

In order for this by-election to have gone ahead at least 10 people that live in the Kingswood ward had to ask for an election. Had this not happened, Corby Town Council would’ve co-opted onto the council.

Who’s standing?

There are four people standing to be the councillor for the Kingswood ward.

Lee Forster is standing for the Green Party, Clare Pavitt is standing for the Labour Party, Mark John Smith is standing for the Conservative Party and Chris Stanbra is standing for the Liberal Democrats.

Some of these names will be fairly well-known in North Northamptonshire.

Lee Forster is a local activist who has previously stood to be on both North Northamptonshire Council and the now defunct Corby Borough Council.

Clare Pavitt ran to be Northamptonshire's Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (PFCC) in 2021. She also ran to be Labour's parliamentary candidate for Kettering at the 2019 general election and also stood to be on North Northamptonshire Council in 2021.

Chris Stanbra served on Corby Borough Council from 2003 to 2015 and was also previously a councillor on Northamptonshire County Council from 2017 until it ceased.

Kingswood

Labour currently hold all 17 seats on Corby Town Council, including the four in Kingswood.

At the last election which was held concurrently with the 2021 North Northamptonshire Council elections, Labour received 6,137 votes out of a possible 9,117 between their four candidates: Peter McEwan (1637), Anthony Dady (1573), Lawrence Ferguson (1506), and Robert Newby (1421).

This was a landslide victory given that the candidate who received the fifth highest number of votes, Ray Boyd (Conservative), only managed 799.

In total the conservatives managed 2,637 votes between their four candidates: Ray Boyd (799), Raymond Jackson (663), Les Von Bujtar (589), and Yvonne Von Bujtar (586).

Michael Mahon of the Green Party received 343 votes.

What do you need to know?

Applications to register to vote must reach the Electoral Registration Officer at Municipal Offices, Bowling Green Road, Kettering, NN15 7QX by midnight on Tuesday, February 6. Applications can be made online here.

Applications, amendments or cancellations of postal votes and amendments or cancellations of proxy votes must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Wednesday, February 7.

Applications for a Voter Authority Certificate or an Anonymous Elector’s Document valid for this election must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Wednesday, February 14. Applications for a Voter Authority Certificate can be made online here.

New applications to vote by proxy at this election must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Wednesday, February 14.

Applications to vote by emergency proxy at this election must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by 5pm on Thursday, February 22 (the day of the election).

Beanfield Community Centre, The Hazelwood Neighbourhood Centre, Kingswood Neighbourhood Centre, and the Autumn Centre are the polling stations for the election and will be open from 7am until 10pm on polling day (22nd Feb)