NI council elections 2023: What ID do I need to bring with me to the polling station?

Voter ID has been required in Northern Ireland since 2003.

Remember, you need to have one of the following forms of ID in order to be able to vote today (May 18) in the local council elections.

The deadline to apply for a NI Electoral Identity Card for the May 18 elections was May 5 (required if you do not have any of the forms of ID listed below).

Note that polling cards are not required to vote but voters will be asked for some proof of identity such as the following:

-The photographic part of a UK, Irish or European Economic Area (EEA) driving licence (provisional licences accepted);

-A UK, Irish or EU passport (including the Irish passport card);

-An Electoral Identity Card;

-A Translink Half Fare SmartPass;

-A Translink Senior SmartPass;

-A Translink 60+ SmartPass;

-A Translink War Disabled SmartPass;

-A Translink Blind Person's SmartPass;

-A biometric immigration document;

-The document does not need to be current, but the photograph does need to be a good enough likeness to allow staff to confirm your identity.

Voters are going to the polls today (Thursday May 18) in order to decide who should represent them on Northern Ireland's 11 councils, with 807 candidates competing for 462 seats in council chambers across the province.

All polling stations opened at 07.00 BST and will remain so until 22:00.

If there's a queue, you can still vote, as long as you joined it before 22:00.

If you are registered to vote, you will have been sent a poll card with your polling number and polling station details.

You can search for your nearest polling station by clicking here.

You can find lists of candidates on the Electoral Office’s website.

Around 1.4m people are eligible to vote in what is the third NI election to 11 so-called super councils.

It is only the second time in 26 years that Northern Ireland is holding a stand-alone council election - as usually they are run alongside polls for Stormont, Westminster or Europe.

Voters will use the single transferable vote (STV) system with people ranking candidates in numerical preference, marking the ballot 1, 2, 3 and so forth for as many preferences as they choose.

Candidates are elected according to the share of the vote that they receive.

The deadlines to register to vote by proxy or by post in Northern Ireland have now passed.

However, you can apply for an emergency proxy vote after these deadlines if work or a medical emergency mean you can no longer vote in person, and this can be done up to 17:00 BST today.

If you have a disability, a companion or the presiding officer can mark the ballot for you.

Polling stations should have large-print sample ballot papers, and tactile voting devices to help people with visual impairments.

Bringing children to the polling station is encouraged to help educate them about the democratic process, but they are not allowed to mark your ballot in any way.

If you waste your vote, it means no candidate will receive a vote – but it is your democratic right to do so if you wish.

There is no legal obligation to vote if you do not want to.

Animals, apart from assistance dogs, are not usually allowed in polling stations. However, other dogs can be admitted at the discretion of the local authority.

You cannot take a selfie inside a polling booth but you may take a picture outside a polling station.

Political discussion is banned inside polling stations and there are serious penalties for revealing how someone else voted.

You are advised not to update your social media accounts on how you voted while inside a polling booth or station.

Counting in the elections will begin on Friday morning (May 19, 2023).

Local councils recruit a returning officer and staff to conduct the ballot, count the votes and process the postal votes.