Easy News: Greater Manchester mayoral election

1. 

   On the 30th July people living in Greater Manchester will elect a new mayor. They will have a Mayoral by-election.

2. 

   The Mayor of Greater Manchester is an important job, making decisions about how the area is run.

3. 

   Greater Manchester hasn't always had a mayor. The job was made in 2017. It was made to let people living in Greater Manchester say how it should be run by voting.

4. 

   Andy Burnham has been mayor since 2017. He had to stop being mayor after he became MP for Makerfield. Being mayor is too important a job to do as well as being an MP.

5. 

   Andy Burnham has won the last three Mayoral elections. People don't know who will win the next one. Many different candidates are all hoping people will vote for them.

6. 

   Everyone who is registered to vote in Greater Manchester will be able to vote in the Mayoral election. If they haven't registered already, they can ask before the 14th of July to be able to vote.

7. 

   There will be many polling stations in Greater Manchester that people can go to and vote. People who have registered to vote will be told which one they should go to.

8. 

   People will need to bring photo identification to vote, like a driving license or a passport. If they do not have one, they can ask for a Voter Authority Certificate. They need to ask by the 22nd of July.

9. 

   If they cannot get to the polling place, they can ask for a postal vote, or a proxy vote. A proxy vote is where you ask someone else to make your vote for you.

10. 

    They need to ask for a postal vote by the 15th of July, or a proxy vote by the 22nd of July. Polls will be open on 30th July from 7am to 10pm.

11. 

    A new voting system is in place for this election. General elections use the first-past-the-post system, where the person with the most votes wins.

12. 

    This election will use a Supplementary Vote system. With a Supplementary Vote, people vote for two candidates as their first and second choice. They really want their first choice to win, but are happy if their second choice wins instead.

13. 

    On election day, the first choice votes will be counted. If any candidate gets more than half of the votes, then they win the election.

14. 

    If nobody gets more than half first choice votes, then the two candidates who got the most go into another round. Every other candidate has lost.

15. 

    In the new round, everyone who gave their first choice vote to a losing candidate gets their second choice vote counted. Afterwards, whichever of the two candidates with the most votes wins the election.

16. 

    Supplementary votes are meant to allow people to vote for who they really want to win, even if they worry they aren't likely to win. They can use their second choice vote to help decide who should be mayor.

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