Community Council Seats Contested

Year	2018	2019 By-Election	2022	2025
Available seats	163	43	163	163
Total number of Community Councils participating	18	15	18	18
Nominations received	120	32	125	114
Vacant Seats	43	16	38	49
Return rate	73.6%	74.4%	76.7%	69.9%
Contested seats	0	9	0	0
Percentage of total seats contested	0.0%	20.9%	0.0%	0.0%
Contested Councils	10	4	0	0
Percentage of Councils contested	0.0%	26.7%	0.0%	0.0%

In 2018 there were 163 available Community Council seats. 120 nominations were received which means the return rate was 74%. None of the seats were contested, leaving 43 vacant seats.

Due to there being 43 vacant seats a by-election was held in 2019, with 32 nominations received (a return rate of 74%). Seats were available in 15 Community Councils, 4 of which saw seats contested. A total of 9 seats out of the 43 available were contested and not all seats were filled, with 16 seats remaining vacant after the by-election was completed.

The percentage of seats contested rose from 0% in the 2018 elections, to 21% in the 2019 by-election. This is over the 2021 target of 10%. A note of caution with regards to this figure is that it was a by-election, with fewer seats available. 

In terms of the number of Community Councils that saw contested seats, in the by-election, 27% saw contests. Again, however, this figure drops when you factor in all 18 Community Councils, and not just the 15 taking part in the by-election. The figure for this is 22%.

In November 2022, 125 nominations were received for the 163 available seats. This was a return rate of 77%. None of the seats were contested, leaving 38 vacant seats.

Whilst in November 2025, 114 nominations were received, with a return rate of 70%. None of the seats were contested, leaving 49 vacant seats. In terms of trends, there has been no real change in the number of Community Council seats contested from the baseline of 74% recorded in 2018.

Last updated: April 2025