The electoral roll of the local body shall be the same as the current Electoral Roll of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Constituency pertaining to the area of the Local Body concerned. Electoral Rolls shall be prepared by the Electoral Registration Officers as per the instructions issued by the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission.

Anybody wishing to raise a claim for inclusion of name in the roll or any objection in respect of any entry in the roll so published, shall submit a proper claim or objection under the provisions of Registration of Electors Rules, 1960 to the Electoral Registration Officer of the concerned Legislative Assembly Constituency. Based on the order of Electoral Registration Officer of the Assembly Constituency on such claim and objection, the Electoral Registration Officer of the local body shall amend the relevant portion of the local body electoral roll incorporating the changes by issuing an amendment to the relevant part of the local body electoral roll.

Such inclusions, corrections and deletions can be carried out up to the last date fixed for making nomination for the local body elections. The electoral roll shall be printed and published by the Electoral Registration Officer in accordance with the instructions of the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission.

Two copies of Local Body Electoral roll will be supplied to the recognised political parties free of cost. Saleable copies will be available at the office of the Local Body Electoral Registration Officer.

Adequate number of polling stations for the voters of the area to exercise their franchise will be provided by the Returning Officer. The list of polling stations attached to each polling area will be prepared and published by the Returning Officer after obtaining the approval of the District Election Officers/District Collectors as per the directions of the State Election Commission.

For the purposes of conducting elections to fill up ordinary and casual vacancies which are to be filled up by direct elections, the Tamil Nadu State Election Commission publishes one or more notification calling upon the electors of such wards/local bodies to elect ward members/Chairpersons as the case may be, of the respective local body on such date or dates as may be specified therein.

Based on the election notification issued by the State Election Commission the Returning Officer shall publish election notice (programme of election) in the notice board of the office of the Returning Officer and in two or more conspicuous places in the respective wards of the local bodies.

Citizens who have completed 21 years of age and whose name appears in the electoral roll of the concerned local body.

He should be an elector of that particular ward for the election in which he signs as a proposer to a candidate. In case of election for the office of a President/Chairperson, the proposer should be an elector of that particular local body.

The nominations will be received in the offices specified in the election notice for the Rural Local Bodies election between 10.00 a.m. and 5.00 p.m. and for the Urban Local Bodies election between 11.00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m. on all the working days during the period fixed for filing of nominations.

The nomination forms will be made available by the Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer to the candidates on payment.

Nomination paper shall be presented by the candidate or his proposer and nobody else.

A candidate shall not be deemed to be duly nominated for election unless at the time of delivery of nomination paper he deposits the prescribed deposit amount or causes to be deposited with the Returning Officer in cash, or enclose with the nomination paper a receipt showing that the sum prescribed has been deposited by him or on his behalf in the respective local body.

Tamil Nadu State Election Commission has implemented the Electors' Right to Information about the candidate from the ordinary elections to Local Bodies 2006, based on the directions of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India on the electors' right to information on assets, liabilities, educational qualifications and criminal antecedents of the contesting candidates.

As per Rule 26(2-A) of the Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Elections) Rules, 1995 / Rule 30 (3) (a) & (b) of the Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, every candidate at the time of filing nomination paper for any election of any Rural Local Bodies / Urban Local Bodies shall file an Affidavit in Form 3-A / Form 4 respectively duly sworn before a Magistrate of the first class or a Notary Public or a Commissioner of Oaths appointed by the High Court of the State containing full and complete information of his assets, liabilities, educational qualifications and criminal antecedents.

In the case of an election to a Ward Member of a Village Panchayat, it is sufficient, if the candidate furnishes the information in the prescribed format, in the form of a declaration before the Returning Officer.

If the seat is reserved for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe, a candidate shall furnish a declaration, in the nomination form made by him to specify the particular caste or tribe of which he/she is a member and the area in relation to which that caste or tribe is notified as Scheduled caste or Scheduled Tribe of the State.

On the date and hour notified, the Returning Officer shall take up the scrutiny of nominations at such place fixed for scrutiny. The candidate, one of his proposers and one other person duly authorised by him, but no other person can attend the scrutiny. The Returning Officer shall give them all reasonable facilities for examining the nomination papers of all the candidates. Returning Officer will scrutinise the nominations in accordance with the Rule provisions. The scrutiny of nomination is a Quasi-judicial function. There is no appeal against the decision of the Returning Officer in regard to validity or rejection of a nomination and his decision can be questioned only by an election petition filed before the competent court after the elections are completed.

A validly nominated candidate may withdraw his candidature by giving a notice signed by him in Form 7 for Rural Elections and Form 8 for Urban Elections to the Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer before 3.00 p.m. of the last date fixed for such withdrawal.

The Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer shall record the date and the time of the filing of Form 7 for Rural Elections and Form 8 for Urban Elections.

The withdrawal notice shall be delivered to the Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer either by the candidate in person or by his proposer who should have been authorised in writing by such candidate to present the notice of withdrawal on his behalf.

The candidate shall give his notice of withdrawal only after the scrutiny of nomination papers of all candidates is over or till the last date fixed for withdrawal.

A candidate validly withdrawn his candidature cannot be allowed to cancel such withdrawal and he shall not continue as a candidate.

Immediately after 3.00 p.m. on the last day fixed for withdrawal of candidature the Returning Officer/Assistant Returning Officer shall draw a list of contesting candidates in the order of Tamil alphabet along with the distinctive symbols in Form 9 for Rural Elections and Form 10 for Urban Elections allotted to each candidate. This form will contain the names of candidates whose nomination papers are found to be valid and who have not withdrawn their candidature within the period.

The ballot papers will be printed by the Returning Officer, based on the instructions issued by the State Election Commission. The names of the contesting candidates with their distinctive symbols will be printed on the ballot paper in the same order as it appears in Form 9 for Rural Elections and Form 10 for Urban Elections. The color of Ballot Paper used for various elections are given below:-

In case of non-party elections the ballot paper will contain only the symbols and not the names of the candidates.

In the Rule 75 to 106 of Tamil Nadu Urban Local Bodies Rules, 2023, envisage the statutory backing for the use of Electronic Voting Machines in Urban Local Body elections.

The poll will take place at the polling station provided for this purpose on the date and time notified by Tamil Nadu State Election Commission.

The ballot papers will be delivered to the elector after obtaining his signature in the counterfoil.

Voting by an elector should be exercised by the elector in person at the polling station and no vote shall be received by proxy.

The counting of votes shall take place on the day at the place as specified in the election notice by the Returning Officer.

The votes shall be counted by or under the supervision and direction of the Returning Officer.

Each contesting candidate, his election agent and such number of his counting agent as specified by the State Election Commission shall have the right to be present at the time of counting.

On completion of counting the Returning Officer will declare the candidate who has secured largest number of valid votes as has been duly elected.

After Declaration the Returning Officer shall give such candidate a certificate of election in Form 25, Form 26 and Form 27 for Rural Elections and Form 26, Form 27 and Form 28 for Urban Elections after obtaining a due acknowledgement.

In the case of uncontested election after the hour fixed for withdrawal of candidatures the Returning Officer will declare that lone candidate to have been duly elected and issue certificate of election in Form 25, Form 26 and Form 27 for Rural Elections and Form 26, Form 27 and Form 28 for Urban Elections.

The Returning Officer will make necessary arrangements for convening the meeting on the dates published in the Election Notification for assumption of office by the elected candidates.

The election for the office of the Chairman / Vice-Chairman of Panchayat Union and District Panchayat and the Vice-President of Village Panchayats and the Mayor / Deputy Mayor and Chairperson / Vice-Chairperson of the Urban Local Bodies will be conducted by the Returning Officer immediately after assumption of office by the elected candidates at the hour fixed for this purpose.

The Returning Officer will convene the meeting for indirect elections of members/Chairperson of various Standing and Statutory Committees on the date fixed by the State Election Commission.