VOTERS across the Five Valleys are heading to the polls today to have their say on who will represent them locally and in Europe.

SDC elections

A third of wards in the district will be electing councillors for Stroud District Council and 29 parish councils are also being elected.

To see if an election is taking place in your area go to the Elections 2014 section of the website.

European Elections

This year voters can also have a say on who represents them in Europe

We realise that not everyone out there may fully understand how EU elections work therefore we have decided to provide a brief explanation of what and who exactly you will be voting for.

  • The European Parliament is the only directly elected institution in the European Union. So this is your chance to decide who represents you in Brussels and Strasbourg
  • Britain is one of eight countries in the EU to use a closed list system – this means you vote for a party rather than an individual.
  • Some countries will be losing seats in Europe to bring the number of MEPs down from 766 to 751. The UK remains unaffected by the readjustment and will continue to have 73 MEPs – six of which will come from the south west.

Where can I vote?

  • You can ONLY vote if you have already registered to do so - registration to vote is now closed and you cannot register at the polling station.
  • There are 98 polling stations across the Stroud district and they will reamin open until 10pm tonight.
  • To find your nearest polling station go to the ‘Where I Live’ section of the Stroud District Council website and type in your postcode.
  • And don't foget - no taking selfies while casting your vote - it could cost you a £5,000 fine or a six month prison sentence

When can I find out the results?

  • The count for the district council elections takes place tomorrow, Friday, at Startford Park Leisure Centre. Follow @stroudnews on twitter for live updates.
  • The European Election count takes place on Sunday night - see the website on Monday for a full report.