Are you eligible to vote?
Every year the Liverymen of the City’s Livery Companies meet in Guildhall to elect two sheriffs at an event called Common Hall. This is normally held on 24 June. The proceedings start promptly at 12 noon. As it is a very popular event, it is advised to come early, ideally by 11am.
People are eligible to vote if they have been admitted as a Liveryman on or before 31 May of the year preceding the election.
For Common Hall in June 2025, this means that one must have been admitted as a Liveryman on or before 31 May 2024; it is otherwise not possible to vote.
Liverymen eligible to vote should obtain a pass to Common Hall in advance of the occasion from the clerk to their Livery Company. It is possible to attend and vote without a pass but this tends to cause a delay whilst names are checked on the register of voters.
Usually, one of the candidates for election is an Alderman/Alderwoman, standing to be Aldermanic Sheriff, and the other candidate(s) (there can be more than one) are Liverymen, standing to be Non-Aldermanic Sheriff. Some years, however, there is a double Aldermanic election, with two Aldermen/Alderwomen candidates.
In the event of a contested election for Non-Aldermanic Sheriff, the Liverymen attending Common Hall vote for their preferred candidate by a show of hands.
The Non-Aldermanic Sheriff is sometimes referred to as ‘the Livery Sheriff’ or ‘the Lay Sheriff’.
“I encourage you to play your part in this historical process.”
