THOUSANDS of people across the city took to the polls yesterday as voting began to replace two councillors.

Local elections to decide district councillors took place across the country, with residents in Brighton voting in two by-elections.

On what has been dubbed Super Thursday, polling stations opened at 7am across Great Britain in the largest test of political opinion outside a General Election, with the future of the Labour Party and the state of the Union among the key issues.

Traditionally, local government elections take place every four years with the most recent city-wide local election for Brighton and Hove taking place in May 2019.

However, following the resignation of Tracey Hill in Hollingdean and Stanmer and Lee Wares in Patcham, residents in those wards had the chance to pick replacements.

Hollingdean and Stanmer was a hotly-contested ward in the last election. Outgoing Tracey Hill received 1,664 votes while the other two seats were won by Labour’s Teresa Fowler with 1,512 votes and Green Martin Osborne with 1,487 votes.

Patcham's three seats were all held by Conservatives the last time voters took to the polls.

Conservative Mr Wares was the most popular of the three, receiving 2,618 votes at the last election.

The other two seats were won by Carol Ann Theobald with 2,249 votes and Alistair McNair with 2,044 votes.

The Argus: The Prime Minister cast his vote in LondonThe Prime Minister cast his vote in London

People outside of the wards also had the chance to vote on the next Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner.

The role of a PCC was created in November 2012 under the Conservative and Lib Dem coalition to address the perceived out of touch nature and lack of accountability of policing authorities.

At the time the Home Office described PCCs as “the most significant democratic reform of policing in our lifetime”.

In all, there are 202 candidates in this year’s PCC elections, 145 in the English PCC seats, 21 in Wales, and 36 in the mayoral contests.

Elsewhere, Prime Minister Boris Johnson cast his vote at Methodist Central Hall in London.

The former London mayor arrived at the polling station at just before 8am on the chilly so-called Super Thursday morning, arm-in-arm with fiancee Carrie Symonds.

He emerged two minutes later and waved at members of the press outside the building as he made his way back to his car.

The Prime Minister also shared a video on Twitter encouraging people to go out and vote.

He said: “It’s a very big day at the polls today. I hope everybody will go out and vote.”