There are seven Divisions in the Winchester City Council area.

These are: 

• Bishops Waltham
• Itchen Valley
• Meon Valley
• Winchester Downlands
• Winchester Eastgate
• Winchester Southern Parishes
• Winchester Westgate 

The County Returning Officer is the Chief Executive of Hampshire County Council, Gary Westbrook. More information about Hampshire County Council can be found on their website. 

The Deputy Returning Officer is Laura J. Taylor, the person responsible for running the Hampshire County elections in the Winchester area.

Winchester City Council is made up of 16 wards with two or three councillors per ward depending on the size. On Thursday 7 May 2026 there will be one seat for 15 out of 16 of the Winchester City Council District Wards up for election. 

These are:

• Alresford & Itchen Valley
• Badger Farm & Oliver's Battery
• Bishops Waltham
• Central Meon Valley
• Colden Common & Twyford
• Denmead
• Southwick & Wickham
• St. Barnabas
• St. Bartholomew
• St. Michael
• St. Paul
• The Worthys
• Upper Meon Valley
• Whiteley & Shedfield
• Wonston & Micheldever

St Luke ward does not have scheduled elections in 2026. 

The Returning Officer is Laura J. Taylor, the person responsible for running the Winchester City Council District and parish elections

There are 19 parishes that are up for election and these are:

• Bighton
• Bishops Sutton
• Bramdean & Hinton Ampner
• Cheriton
• Colden Common
• Crawley
• Curdridge
• Droxford
• Hambledon
• Headbourne Worthy
• Kilmeston
• Kings Worthy
• Micheldever
• Old Alresford 
• Olivers Battery
• Owslebury
• Soberton
• Sparsholt 
• Tichborne

The Returning Officer is Laura J. Taylor, the person responsible for running the Winchester City Council District and parish elections

If you are an eligible elector and you are already on the Register of Electors for Winchester, you do not need to re-register for these elections.

Information on how to register is available on the GOV.uk website here. The deadline for applying to register for voting in this election is midnight on Monday 20 April 2026.

Details of where your polling station is located will be found on your poll card, which will be sent out towards the end of March 2026.

You are now required to show photographic identification at polling stations before you can be given a ballot paper.

For more information please visit our dedicated page on the new Photographic Identification requirements here.

If you are unable to get to your polling station on Thursday 7 May or would prefer to vote another way to cast your vote, you can register for a postal or proxy vote. 

If you are unable to get to your polling station on Thursday 7 May 2026 or would prefer to vote another way to cast your vote, you can register for a postal or proxy vote.

To apply please see our dedicated webpage on absent votes 

BY POST

Postal voters will not need photographic identification and will be issued with their postal ballot papers as usual, including postal proxies.
The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on Tuesday 21 April 2026. 

BY PROXY

If you choose to vote by proxy, then the person who you have trusted to vote on your behalf will have to take their own photographic identification to be issued a ballot paper at the polling station. 
The deadline to apply to vote by proxy is 5pm on Tuesday 28 April 2026. 

 

 

 

 

Election timetable- Thursday 7 May 2026 ^{(pdf, 54kb)}