MEMBERS of the public across East Lothian will be using the single transferable vote (STV) system when they go to the polls on Thursday, May 5, to vote in the East Lothian Council elections.

This is an entirely different from the traditional First Past the Post system used at General Elections and to elect constituency MSPs to the Scottish Parliament.

The STV system aims to produce proportional representation, while at the same time giving voters more choice over who their elected representative will be.

For this election, voters do not use a single ‘X’ on the ballot paper like at Westminster and Holyrood elections.

When you cast your vote, you list the candidates in order of preference, starting with ‘1’ for your first choice, ‘2’ for your second and so on until you no longer wish to express a preference.

If the candidate who is your first choice does not have enough support to be elected and is therefore eliminated then your vote is transferred to your second preference.

Again, if this candidate did not have enough support, the same transfer would take place to your third preference and so on.

If the candidate who is your first choice has more than enough support and is elected with surplus to the quota needed to be elected, then surplus votes are again transferred to the second preference.

There are currently 22 councillors on East Lothian Council and all seats, across six wards, are up for election on May 5.

The six wards are as follows:

  • Musselburgh (4 councillors elected)
  • Preston Seton Gosford (4 councillors elected)
  • Tranent, Wallyford and Macmerry (4 councillors elected)
  • North Berwick Coastal (3 councillors elected)
  • Haddington and Lammermuir (4 councillors elected)
  • Dunbar and East Linton (3 councillors elected

The Musselburgh ward contains the entirety of East Lothian’s largest town.

Preston, Seton, Gosford includes Prestonpans, Cockenzie and Port Seton, and Longniddry.

The Tranent, Wallyford and Macmerry ward contains the three communities named, as well as Elphinstone and Whitecraig.

North Berwick Coastal includes North Berwick, Aberlady, Gullane, Dirleton, Fenton Barns and Whitekirk.

Haddington and Lammermuir contains Haddington, Athelstaneford, Bolton, East Saltoun, Garvald, Gifford, Humbie, Morham, Ormiston and Pencaitland.

Dunbar and East Linton includes Dunbar, East Linton, Innerwick, Oldhamstocks, Spott, Stenton, Tyninghame, West Barns and Whittingehame.

At the last East Lothian Council election in 2017, Labour ended up as the largest party with nine councillors and has operated a minority administration for the last five years. The Conservatives finished second with seven councillors and served as the official opposition. The SNP were third with six councillors. No other parties won any seats at the 2017 election.