The local government elections in Northern Ireland are almost upon us.
In the Mid and East Antrim area, just over 60 candidates will compete across seven district electoral areas to elect 40 councillors to represent the public in the local authority for the next term.
Read more: Northern Ireland council election 2023: Dates, candidates, where to vote and more you need to know
The second smallest council in terms of population and registered electorate, MEA has the biggest unionist majority in the country with two-thirds of seats and more than two-thirds of the first preference votes.
The DUP has always been the largest party on the council followed by the UUP who are the second largest party by vote share but are matched by the Alliance party with the number of seats held (7).
Alliance will be hoping that Assembly election gains in North Antrim and East Antrim will lead to gains at council level.
Mid and East Antrim is the only council area where the TUV polls above 10% of the vote and will be hoping the recent political debates about the Protocol will help it gain ground.
Sinn Féin lost a seat in 2019 (to Alliance) and will be hoping to regain some lost ground.
The SDLP only ran one candidate in 2019 but this year, the party is also running a candidate in Bannside.
The council election will take place on May 18 and will be the first electoral test for Northern Ireland's political parties since last May's Stormont Assembly election.
Here is the full list of candidates running in Mid and East Antrim:
Ballymena
Matthew Armstrong (TUV)
Colin Crawford (UUP)
Reuben Glover (DUP)
John Hyland (Alliance)
Bréanainn Lyness (Sinn Féin)
Lawrie Philpott (DUP)
Rodney Quigley (Independent)
Eugene Reid (SDLP)
Andrew Wright (DUP)
Bannside
Ian Friary (Sinn Féin)
Timothy Gaston (TUV)
Jack Gibson (Alliance)
Thomas Gordon (DUP)
Anna Henry (TUV)
Tyler Hoey (DUP)
Stewart McDonald (TUV)
Jackson Minford (UUP)
Morgan Murphy (SDLP)
Braid
Beth Adger (DUP)
Alan Barr (UUP)
Chelsea Harwood (Alliance)
Christopher Jamieson (TUV)
William McCaughey (DUP)
Julie Philpott (DUP)
Archie Rae (Sinn Féin)
Keith Turner (UUP)
Matthew Warwick (TUV)
Carrick Castle
Billy Ashe (DUP)
Cheryl Brownlee (DUP)
Bethany Ferris (UUP)
Lauren Gray (Alliance)
Frances Henderson (TUV)
Jenny Hutchinson (Green Party)
Jim McCaw (PUP)
John McDermott (DUP)
Robin Stewart (UUP)
Coast Road
Eddie Alcorn (Green Party)
Andrew Clarke (DUP)
James McKeown (Sinn Féin)
Maureen Morrow (UUP)
Geraldine Mulvenna (Alliance)
Angela Smyth (DUP)
Niamh Spurle (Alliance)
Wes Stevenson (TUV)
Olivia Swan (UUP)
Knockagh
Marc Collins (DUP)
Bobby Hadden (Independent)
Peter Johnston (DUP)
Gary McCabe (UUP)
Aaron Skinner (Alliance)
James Strange (TUV)
Noel Williams (Alliance)
Andrew Wilson (UUP)
Larne Lough
Roy Beggs (UUP)
James Carson (UUP)
Ronnie Donnell (TUV)
Maeve Donnelly (Alliance)
Robert Logan (Alliance)
Gregg McKeen (DUP)
Philip Randle (Green Party)
Paul Reid (DUP)
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