POLLS have opened across West Oxfordshire today for a by-election in Witney.

The contest was triggered by the resignation of former MP David Cameron last month.

Mr Cameron, who stood down as Prime Minister in July after Britain voted to quit the European Union, said he feared becoming a 'distraction' for the government led by Theresa May.

He had originally said he intended to stay on until 2020.

But in an interview with the Oxford Mail, the 50-year-old said his comments from the backbenches would be 'interpreted as commenting on what the Government is doing' and that he 'could not do the job as I have in the past'.

There are 13 candidates standing to replace Mr Cameron, with polls opening at 7am this morning and closing at 10pm.

West Oxfordshire District Council said there were 82,277 people on the electoral roll and 91 polling stations will be open.

They will be staffed by some 200 people, with another 100 working at the count later on at the Windrush Leisure Centre.

The first ballot boxes will start arriving at the leisure centre shortly after the polls close, with a result expected in the early hours of Friday morning.

The acting returning officer is Keith Butler.

Turnout for the 2015 general election was 73.57 per cent, the district council said. Mr Cameron, who stood for the Conservatives, won with a majority of more than 25,000.

For the EU Referendum in June, turnout was 79.72 per cent, with 53.7 per cent of voters in West Oxfordshire backing Remain overall.

See tomorrow's Oxford Mail for coverage of the result.