Very few candidates find elections easy. Being a candidate is usually a lot of work – if you are taking the prospect of being elected seriously. The hard work often begins long before the election itself is called.
Some elections are not contested. When this happens, and you are the only candidate, or there are the same or a lower number of candidates including you standing for election than the number of seats available for the Ward or Division, you become ‘elected’ without having to actually run a campaign.
Non contested elections happen more regularly at Parish & Town level, where interest in becoming a Councillor varies, and there can be a number of seats representing a Parish Ward. However, they do happen at Borough and District level frequently too, and it is technically possible to be elected without contest as an Member of Parliament too.
It is wise to expect that an election will always be contested, and prepare on the basis that if you are going to win, then you will have to fight.
As a candidate, the amount of work necessary to win a seat will in many ways be based upon the number of electors there will be for your Ward or Division on the Electoral role, coupled with its physical size and location.
The number of electors are fewest for a Parish or Town Council Ward and increase as you go up the Tiers of Government. In real terms, if you want to meet everyone personally who you are likely to represent if elected, you will have most chance of this if you run for a Parish or Town Council Seat.
In the same vein, as you go up the Tiers of Government, the level of politics increases too, and that can have a big impact on the type of campaign you will need to run and how much effort you will need to make in communicating your messages to the people who you will be asking to elect you.
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