Polling will take place on Thursday 25 September 2025 to elect one of six candidates standing in The Highland Council's Tain and Easter Ross Ward by-election and one of eight candidates for Ward 11 ..
Issued on behalf of the Returning Officer
Polling will take place on Thursday 25 September 2025 to elect one of six candidates standing in The Highland Council's Tain and Easter Ross Ward by-election and one of eight candidates for Ward 11 Caol and Mallaig. Voters are being reminded to make sure they are ready to cast their vote.
The single transferable vote system will be used. Instead of marking a cross, voters should rank the candidates in order of their choice, placing a number 1 in the box next to the name of the candidate who is their first choice, 2 in the box next to their second choice and so on. Voters may rank as many or as few candidates as they wish.
The Council has created a short video that explains the process.
Postal packs have been despatched to registered electors who submitted their application by the postal vote deadline. Anyone who has requested a postal vote will not be able to vote in person at a polling station. Anyone unable to return their postal pack by post in time, they can hand it in at any polling station within the ward. It is possible to hand in completed postal packs at any of the polling stations located within wards 7 and 11 between 7am and 10pm on Thursday 25 September 2025.
A list of polling station locations can be found on the Council’s website
For those opting to vote in person on Thursday 25 September 2025, polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm. Voters are encouraged to check their poll cards as this will have details of their designated polling station or check online via Find your polling station | Where Do I Vote? There is no requirement to bring voter ID or the poll card in order to vote.
Voters in Ward 7 are reminded that Fearn Primary School and Nigg Village Hall will not be used as polling places for this by-election. Instead, in-person voters for both these polling districts will vote at the Balintore Seaboard Memorial Hall. A dial-a-bus service will be in place on Thursday 25 September 2025 to take any voters in the Nigg and Fearn area to the Balintore Seaboard Memorial Hall to vote in person. Anyone wishing to use this service must book before 18:30 on Wednesday 24 September 2025 by calling 01862 892166. The dial-a-bus service will be operating on Thursday 25 September 2025 between the hours 09:00 – 12:00 and 13:00 – 14:30.
The candidates standing for election to Ward 7 – Tain and Easter Ross are:
ANDROULAKAKIS, Manuel - Scottish Conservative and Unionist
BARNETT, Andrew - Scottish Greens
NEWMAN, Peter - Scottish National Party (SNP)
NIMMONS, Eric – Independent
RAMSAY, Connie - Scottish Liberal Democrats
WILSON, Stuart - Reform UK
The candidates standing for Ward 11 Caol and Mallaig are:
CAMERON, Sammy – Independent
CAMPBELL, Isla Maev - Scottish Liberal Democrats
FORBES, Ryan Andrew - Reform UK
HENDERSON, Allan – Independent
MACKENZIE, Donald Matheson - Scottish Conservatives and Unionist
PERERA, Michael Robert - Scottish Labour Party
PROSSER, Matthew Sam – Independent
TAYLOR, Aaron - Scottish National Party (SNP)
To ensure everyone can vote independently and confidently, a variety of accessibility aids are provided at the polling stations, including a ballot paper overlay. When used alongside the audio recording of the ballot paper, this provides a fully self-service voting experience for blind and partially sighted voters, allowing them to vote in private and without assistance.
The electronic election counts for both wards will take place on Friday 26 September starting at 10am. People will be able to follow the count and watch the declaration of the results live via the Council’s social media channels - @highlandcouncil
All information about the by-election and short video clips on how to vote or complete your postal vote are available by visiting the Council’s website