The next local elections will take place on the 5th of May. They will allow residents of individual municipalities to choose their councillors. The latter will be in charge of such matters as rubbish collection and social welfare, among other things. 

According to the most recent data provided by ONS (Office for National Statistics), there are 96,296 Polish citizens entitled to vote in local elections in the 33 counties, of which Greater London is composed. This figure represents 1.57% of the total electorate of Greater London. 

The number of Polish voters has been decreasing successively since 2018. This situation can partly be explained by the fact that numerous Poles received a British passport and no longer appear on the election lists as Polish citizens. 

According to ONS, the number of Polish voters decreased by 3.7% compared to the previous year and by 12.6% compared to 2018.

The largest concentrations of Polish voters in London are to be found in the municipalities of Ealing (12 377), Hounslow (7 570), Brent (5 274), Croydon (5 029), Barnet (4 594), Haringey (4 537), Merton (4,608) and Hillingdon (4,501).

Interestingly, half of the candidates of Polish origin (27 out of 55) for 19 municipal councils (18 from Hackney and 4 from Haringey) are on the list of the Conservatives, while the rest appear on the lists of other parties (11 from the Greens, 8 from the Liberal Democrats, 7 from Labour, and 2 from other parties).

Image: Unsplash

Author: Sébastien Meuwissen