Election plans
Renfrewshire Council has finalised polling and counting arrangements for next month’s Scottish Parliament election, writes Steph Brawn, Local Democracy Reporter.
On Thursday, May 6, voters will elect three MSPs to represent Renfrewshire North and West, Renfrewshire Sou t h, and Pa i s l e y , respectively at Holyrood for the next five years.
Meanwhile, seven MSPs will be elected to represent the West of Scotland region from the votes cast on the regional list.
The additional member system of voting is used at the election where every registered voter will be asked to cast two ballots - one for a named constituency candidate and one for a party.
The second vote is used to determine how many regional seats each party will receive.
Around 500 staff will be employed across 68 polling places in Renfrewshire - containing a total of 201 polling stations - to ensure voting runs smoothly and safely during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
They will be assisted by cleaners and covid marshals.
People’s votes will be collected at the stations in 402 ballot boxes, as well as more than 120 postal vote boxes, which will then be taken to Braehead Arena where votes will be counted and verified.
Unlike in normal times, there will be no overnight count on Thursday, May 6, and results will be announced across the following two days.
Council chiefs have c o n f i rmed they are predicting returning officer Sandra Black will declare the results of Paisley and Renfrewshire North and West constituencies during the early evening of Friday, May 7.
The result for Renfrewshire South is expected to be confirmed during the early afternoon of Saturday, May 8, while people will discover the outcome of the West Scotland regional vote later on that day.
Candidates standing in the Paisley constituency include the SNP’s George Adam, Scott Bevan of the Scottish Greens, Neil Bibby of Scottish Labour, Russell Findlay of the Scottish Conservatives, and Eileen McCartin of the Scottish Liberal Democrats.
In Renfrewshire North and West, Natalie Don of the SNP, Johanna Baxter of Scottish Labour, the Scottish Conservatives’ Julie Pirone, Martin Bell of the Scottish Family Party, and Ross Stalker of the Scottish Lib Dems will fight it out for the seat.
In Renfrewshire South, SNP candidate Tom Arthur, Scotia Future’s Andy Doig, Scottish Labour’s Paul O’Kane, Derek Stillie of the Scottish Conservatives, and Christine Cosh of the Scottish Lib Dems will contest the seat.