In order to vote in an election you need to be on the electoral register. If you are already registered to vote, you do not need to re-register, unless you have moved house or your details have changed.

Register to vote

The law changed in June 2014 to a new system called Individual Electoral Registration.

The easiest way to register is by going online. You will need your National Insurance number.

  Register to vote Opens in a new window

If you need a paper form, please ring us.

Please note that the deadline to register to vote in time for the Police and Crime Commissioner Election is midnight on Tuesday 21 April 2020.

Please note: After you have applied to register, we will need to check and process your application before it can be approved. We will do this as soon as we can.

The annual register is published on 1 December each year from the electoral information you give us.

After the annual register is published, we update that register under the monthly rolling registration procedure between January and September.

Under normal circumstances, no monthly updates are published in October and November).

Registering to vote: easy read guide

GOV.UK and Mencap and written a step-by-step, easy read guide to registering to vote, for people with a learning disability. The guide is an example of an application to register to vote.

Voting by post

If you are unable to get to the polling station on polling day, you can apply to vote by post. Any person on the register can apply for a postal vote.

Please note that if you wish to vote by post for the Police and Crime Commissioner Election, the deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on Wednesday 22 April 2020.

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Voting by proxy

Voting by proxy means that you appoint someone you trust to vote on your behalf. Voting by proxy can be useful if you can’t get to the polling station on election day, for example if you fall ill or you are abroad. 

If you already have a postal vote and wish to change to a proxy you must tell us 11 working days before the poll. The deadline for new proxy applications is 6 working days before an election.

Please note that if you wish to vote by proxy for the Police and Crime Commissioner Election, the deadline to apply for a proxy vote is 5pm on Wednesday 29 April 2020.

  Register to vote by proxy Opens in a new window

Emergency proxy

In certain circumstances, where you have an emergency that means you cannot go to the polling station in person you can apply for an emergency proxy up to 5pm on the day of the poll.

  • You must be on the electoral register to vote in any election
  • By law, you must register to vote or you could be fined up to £80
  • If you are not on the register you may find it harder to get a loan, mortgage, finance agreement, or even a mobile phone contract as the register is used by credit reference agencies

Contact Elections

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