Elections in your area
Thursday 7 May 2026
You will have two ballot papers to fill out.
- Scottish Parliament elections (Constituencies): Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale constituency
- Scottish Parliament elections (Regions): South Scotland region
Get ready to vote:
There may also be parish, town or community council elections in some areas.
Scottish Parliament elections
Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale constituency
This election will be held on Thursday 7 May 2026.
There are boundary changes which affect this election.
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Members of the Scottish Parliament are elected every five years. The Parliament has responsibility over areas including health, transport, local government and education, as well as some tax raising powers. Learn more about your MSPs.
When voting for Members of the Scottish Parliament you will have two ballot papers: one to represent your constituency, and one to represent your region. You can vote only once on each paper. The constituency MSP is elected by First Past the Post. The number of regional MSPs is then calculated using proportional representation, taking into account the number of constituency MSPs the party has already won in that region.
Your constituency may have changed. A new set of constituency and regional boundaries will be used for the 2026 Scottish parliament elections. The boundaries have been reviewed by the independent organisation Boundaries Scotland to take account of population changes since 2011. This means that your constituency or region may have changed since the last election. Learn more about the review.
You will have one vote, and can choose from five candidates.
Get ready to vote:
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How to vote
This election uses First-past-the-post.
Mark an X in the box for your preferred candidate.
You can mark up to one candidate.
Read the instructions at the top of your ballot paper carefully.
For more information, visit The Electoral Commission's website or ask an official at your polling station.
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Keith Cockburn
Conservative and Unionist Party
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Daniel Coleman
Labour Party
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Duncan Angus Melville Dunlop
Liberal Democrats
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Carolyn Grant
Reform UK
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Calum Kerr
Scottish National Party (SNP)
Scottish Parliament elections
South Scotland region
This election will be held on Thursday 7 May 2026.
There are boundary changes which affect this election.
We are currently aware of 72 candidates for this position. We expect more candidates to be announced in the future. The official candidate list will be published after 2 April 2026, when this page will be updated. You can help improve this page: add information about candidates to our database.
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Show 2 candidates
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Show 5 candidates
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1. Terry Howson
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Show 9 candidates
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2. Craig Hoy
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4. Sharon Dowey
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7. Julie Pirone
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8. James Adams
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9. Tracey Clark
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Show 10 candidates
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2. Joe Fagan
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4. Ewan Macphee
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8. Davy Russell
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10. Jack McConnel
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Show 7 candidates
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Show 10 candidates
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4. Tim Kelly
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6. Dan Clarke
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7. John McNamee
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9. Andrew Scott
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10. Anne Millar
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Show 2 candidates
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2. Paul Adkins
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Show 2 candidates
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1. Gareth Kirk
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Show 9 candidates
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1. Laura Moodie
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7. Tim Clancey
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8. Tom Kerr
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Show 1 candidates
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Show 13 candidates
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2. Alan Brown
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3. Emma Harper
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6. John Redpath
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9. Alex Kerr
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10. Allan Dorans
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11. Kirsty Campbell
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12. Ross Clark
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13. Amjid Bashir
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You should get a "poll card" through the post telling you where to vote.
If you haven't got one, or aren't sure where to vote, you should call Scottish Borders Council on 01835 825100.
Scottish Borders Council
https://www.saa.gov.uk/scottishborders/electoral-registration/
Electoral.Registration@scotborders.gov.uk -
Register to vote
You need to be registered in order to vote. If you aren't registered to vote visit https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
Register before midnight on 20 April 2026 to vote on 7 May 2026.
Send your postal and proxy vote applications to your local electoral registration team. You can also contact them to find out if you’re on the electoral register, and if you already have a postal or proxy vote.
Electoral Registration
Electoral Registration Officer
PO Box 13639
Council Headquarters
Newtown St Boswells
MELROSE
TD6 6BQ
https://www.saa.gov.uk/scottishborders/electoral-registration/
Electoral.Registration@scotborders.gov.ukYour Returning Officer
Scottish Borders Council Electoral Registration Officer
PO Box 13639
Council Headquarters
Newtown St Boswells
MELROSE
TD6 6BQ
https://www.saa.gov.uk/scottishborders/electoral-registration/
Electoral.Registration@scotborders.gov.uk -
Voting by post
If you know that you won't be able to get to the polling station on polling day, you can vote by post. You have until 21 April 2026 to Apply for a postal vote.
Read more about applying for a postal vote.
Ballot papers for the election on 7 May 2026 will not be printed until after today. If you have a postal vote, your local council will send your postal voting pack around three weeks before polling day.
If you are away from home before or shortly after today, and will not return before polling day, your postal vote will not reach you in time for you to use it. In this case, you should consider applying for a proxy vote instead.
If you have not received your postal voting pack, you can contact Scottish Borders Council on 01835 825100.
Scottish Borders Council
https://www.saa.gov.uk/scottishborders/electoral-registration/
Electoral.Registration@scotborders.gov.uk -
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