The nominations are in for next month’s county council elections, with Stuart Hughes facing opposition from three other candidates in the Sidmouth Sidford ward.

Roger Giles has announced he will be standing down after 20 years at County Hall, with fellow Independent Claire Wright standing to try and replace him in representing Ottery St Mary and Sidbury.

There will also be representatives from Labour, the Conservatives and UKIP on the voter slip for the Ottery Rural ward come election day on May 2.

Of the 62 wards which make up Devon County Council (DCC), 10 are in East Devon, with Labour and Conservative candidates standing in all of them, with candidates from UKIP and the Liberal Democrats in all but one, six Green Party representatives and three Independents.

The Conservatives are currently by far the largest party at DCC, with 41 seats and a majority of 20, well ahead of the Liberal Democrats, with 13 councillors, Labour with six, and there are currently two Independents.

In the ward covering both Sidmouth and Sidford, Conservative candidate Mr Hughes, the county council’s cabinet member for highways, is up against Labour candidate Judy Blackwell, Lawrie Brownlee, representing UKIP, and Liberal Democrat Martin Gammell, who already sits on the district council, representing Whimple.

In the Ottery Rural ward, which also covers the villages outside the town along with Sidbury, Andrew Blackwell is standing for Labour, John Kelly for UKIP, Sidmouth town and district councillor Chris Wale is standing for the Conservatives, and Mrs Wright, who is also an Ottery town and district councillor.

The election takes place on Thursday, May 2, but voters in Sidmouth and Ottery are being advised to check they have received polling cards in the wake of problems in neighbouring Exmouth.

East Devon District Council issued the advice after complaints about people not being on the electoral register, and therefore unable to register their vote.

For more information on the elections and voting see www.eastdevon.gov.uk/dccelection2013 and new.devon.gov.uk/democracy/elections-and-voting/election-2013.