Countdown to the General Election continues in North Ayrshire!

Voters will choose their MPs in the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency and the Central Ayrshire constituency.

Voting gets underway at 7am on June 8, with polling stations remaining open until 10pm.

The candidates for the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency are:

Mark Dickson - Scottish Liberal Democrats

Patricia Gibson - Scottish National Party (SNP)

Christopher Rimicans - Scottish Labour Party

David Rocks - Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party

And the candidates for Central Ayrshire – which includes some parts of Kilwinning and Irvine – are:

Caroline Joy Hollins Martin – Scottish Conservative and Unionist

Tom Inglis – Scottish Liberal Democrat

Nairn McDonald – Scottish Labour Party

Philippa Whitford – Scottish National Party (SNP)

The Count for the Central Ayrshire constituency will be held in South Ayrshire while the Count for the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency will be held in St Matthew’s Academy, Saltcoats.

Organisation of the UK Parliamentary Election in North Ayrshire has been a huge undertaking for Council staff.

Thirty-six different polling places are being set up across the North Ayrshire and Arran constituency with 99 polling stations. A total of 198 Presiding Officers and Polling Clerks will be employed to cover all polling stations.

At the Count itself, there will be 87 staff, the vast majority of them enumerators who will count the votes.

Returning Officer Elma Murray said: “Staff have worked tirelessly to ensure the election is open, transparent and runs as smoothly as possible.

“Having recently staged the local council elections, they are well prepared for the vote and count on June 8.

“We have been very encouraged by the number of people who have registered in time to vote in both the recent Council Elections and the upcoming General election and I would encourage every one of them to ensure their voice is heard by casting their vote.”

The deadline for registering to vote has now passed. However, for those wishing to apply for a proxy vote, the deadline is 5pm on Wednesday, May 31.

Those who may require a replacement postal voting pack should request this as soon as possible by contacting the election office on (01294) 324710.

However, if you are unable to send back your postal vote in time, you can still have your say – just take your postal vote along to your polling station between 7am and 10pm on June 8.

Voters are reminded that on their ballot paper, one ‘X’ should be marked next to the candidate of their choice.

Unfortunately for voters aged 16 or 17 on June 8, they should be aware that while they were eligible to vote in the Council elections, they will not be able to vote in the Parliamentary Election as the minimum voting age is 18.