Voters are heading to the polls today for elections to decide which party will control Kent County Council and who will be the next police and crime commissioner for Kent.

There are also elections in Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells, where a third of seats on the borough councils are being contested, and a handful of parish council by-elections in other authorities.

Some will have an unprecedented four votes in what has been dubbed ‘Super Thursday’ to reflect the number of ballots that are taking place.

There are 81 seats up for grabs in the election for KCC while voters will also decide who is to be the next police and crime commissioner from a trio of candidates.

Election for that role was postponed because of Covid-19 last year, as were the two elections for Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells.

While the elections all take place today the results will not all be completed until Monday.

The results for KCC will be declared tomorrow (Friday), while the count for the police and crime commissioner takes place on Monday.

The results for Tunbridge Wells council will be declared on Saturday and Maidstone Council will be declared tomorrow (Friday), following the completion of the KCC results.

There could be delays in the announcement of results as councils have had to take steps to ensure both polling stations and the venues for counting the results are bio-secure.

Those choosing to vote at polling stations are being encouraged to take their own pencils or pens and must wear a mask.

Politically, the elections will be seen as a litmus test for how the main parties nationally are standing. They will be the first set of elections Labour has contested under leader Keir Starmer.

And while opinion polls continue to give the Conservatives a comfortable lead, the recent controversy over how a redecoration of 10 Downing Street was paid for might dent that.

We will have all the county council results along with reaction and commentary throughout the day tomorrow on KentOnline.

Follow our political editor Paul Francis on Twitter @PaulOnPolitics for his take on the election as the results come in.

Head to our politics page for expert analysis and all the latest news from your politicians and councils.

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