Why May's elections will be different in Surrey
BBCOn Thursday 7 May, voters will go to the polls for the elections at two new councils in Surrey.
Last year ministers announced the creation of unitary authorities for West Surrey and East Surrey, in the first major decision on local government reorganisation in England.
Surrey County Council (SCC) and 11 borough and district councils will be abolished in 2027, with areas being merged together.
A total of 162 seats will be up for grabs as part of a big change in the way the elections are happening in Surrey, compared to previous years.
Why and how are councils being reorganised?
Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has said the aim of the shake up is to make councils simpler, more efficient and speed up processes, particularly on issues like planning.
Under the new system, the unitary authorities will provide all of the local services which have - until now - been delivered by SCC and the district/borough councils.
The political map of Surrey has been changed by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE ) so that there are 81 wards, with two councillors representing each one.
The East Surrey Council will have 72 seats up for election in 36 wards, while West Surrey will have 90 seats for 45 wards.
Were these elections among those which had been delayed?
No, they were always due to happen, following the cancellation of the county council elections in Surrey last year.
That was a controversial decision, with one senior politician claiming that the public had had their democratic rights taken away, in light of the government's u-turn, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
The deadline for people to put themselves forward to stand in May's council elections is 16:00 BST on Thursday 9 April, with candidate nominations opening on 24 March.
People will be able to vote in person at their local polling station on 7 May between 0700 BST and 2200 BST or arrange a postal vote or nominate someone to vote on their behalf as a proxy before election day.
The counting of the votes will be carried out by the borough and district councils on Friday 8 May, with results declared during throughout the day.
What should be expected from the campaigns?
The Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, Labour, Green Party and Residents' Association and Independent councillors are all currently involved with running the existing local authorities in Surrey, either as part of coalitions, or in majority or minority administrations.
They will all have candidates standing at the elections in May, as will Reform, who only have a few councillors at the moment, but will be looking to make gains given their position in the polls.
It is difficult to know exactly what the issues which influence how people cast their votes will be.
But subjects regularly raised by residents in Surrey include potholes and the state of the roads, support for children with special educational needs, planning applications to build hundreds of new homes and the debt at some councils and the impact on the new unitary authorities.
Will the new councils be up and running straight away?
No, for almost a year the East and West Surrey councils will be "shadow authorities".
This means they will not take up the full range of their powers or run services until they are formally established.
On 1 April 2027, a date known as vesting day, they will be formally established and take over from the 12 councils - SCC and the borough and districts - which will continue to provide services until then.
Special joint committees have been set up to help prepare for the transfer of powers and responsibilities from the old councils to the new ones.
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