Voters in the North East will be pleased to know the weather on local and mayoral elections is set to be dry and mild with some sunny spells. 

According to the latest forecast, Thursday will see mist and fog slowly lifting and breaking, with clouds retreating towards the coast.

This will allow some bright and sunny spells to develop inland. While it will be cooler and cloudier along the coast, the maximum temperature is expected to be around 14°C.

However, as results roll in, the outlook for Friday to Sunday is a little different.

Friday is predicted to be cloudy with heavy, possibly thundery, showers at times. Rain and drizzle are likely to push north later on Friday, slowly clearing through Saturday. Sunday is expected to have variable clouds and showers, and temperatures are expected to remain near normal.

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Hour-by-hour forecast from the Met Office (based on a Darlington location): 

7.00: 10C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

8.00: 10C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

9.00: 11C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

10.00: 12C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

11.00: 12C, <5 per cent chance of rain. 

12.00: 12C, <5 per cent chance of rain. 

13.00: 13C, <5 per cent chance of rain. 

14.00: 12C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

15.00: 12C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

16.00: 12C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

17.00: 11C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

18.00: 11C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

19.00: 11C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

20.00: 10C, 10 per cent chance of rain. 

21.00: 10C, <5 per cent chance of rain. 

22.00: 10C, <5 per cent chance of rain.