UK: Voting in government elections

There has been a recent conversation on this topic, and given that there is a General Election due shortly, I thought that I'd post some, hopefully, helpful links.

The Electoral Commission's page on the subject, https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/how-cast-your-vote/voting-post

Government page on voting, https://www.gov.uk/voting-in-the-uk#postal-voting
and page with the form to apply for a postal vote, https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apply-for-a-postal-vote

Whatever your political persuasion, if you aren't registered please register to vote, and if it makes it easier for you, which it probably will for most of us, apply for a postal vote.

 

I have seen some people expressing concerns on Twitter that the December date of the election, considering the usual strain on the postal service around this time of year, may result in postal votes not arriving to be counted in time.

So, it may be better to apply for a proxy vote.

 

Interesting, in Australia it doesn't matter, so long as they are posted before the election - they are still counted as they come in, with results of close elections delayed.

But I have a feeling the timing is also about having less people vote, given that voting is not compulsory in the UK...

 

Merged thread
If you are worried about whether the postal vote will get there in time, you can get somebody to take it to the polling station for you. My mum is going to take mine. I don't trust the postal service at this time of year.

If you don't have somebody who can take it for you, then try asking one of the local parties. If you tell them that you are voting for them, then they will want to ensure that your vote gets there.

Likewise, if you didn't manage to apply for a postal vote, and if you're able to leave the house with support, you can contact one of the parties and ask them to drive you to the polling station.

 

With a general election in the UK due at some point this year, if you want to make use of a postal vote then probably better to get your application in for it sooner rather than later (if you aren't registered already of course). The links in my quoted post still seem fine.

 

I like voting in person and have never yet missed a general election. It makes me feel part of the community in a way that almost nothing else does.

I think I should apply for a postal vote now however. I'm not sure I can vote in person since the covid vaccinations have reduced my functionality.
Was interested in John McDonnell's article in Politico today, posted on another thread, urging more help for those with ME. I change constituency this time- I haven't moved, it's boundary changes. I need to get more au fait with candidates and how they might respond to ME.

 

Yes, I've done it for many years because the polling station near my former house was a school that had slightly rubbish wheelchair back then.

Our ballot papers seem to be sent out quite a long way in advance, so there's plenty of time to post them.

 

I also recommend it, been doing it since long before i was ill as i worked out of town.

The ONLY downside is that it does mean you have to vote several days before election day, & on one occasion i found out something the day before elction day that made me wish i'd voted differently, so that was a bummer, but i ahev usually decided long before time anyway so it doesnt matter.

 

Merged thread
Just to remind any readers who are in the UK and who are well enough not to have applied for a postal vote: to vote in person now you will have to supply photo ID from a very limited selection of approved IDs, or get your local Council to issue you with a form of voter ID. Local elections are at the beginning of May, and there's likely to be a general election later on in the year. Probably the easiest thing for most people on here is to apply for a postal vote if there's still time.

 

I’m lucky: I only have to cross the road to express my opinion

 

A reminder that if anyone in GB is struggling for general-purpose photo ID, a provisional driving licence is the cheapest at £34 if you apply online. It doesn't matter if you've no intention of ever driving, and like a passport they last for 10 years. As @Wits_End says, you don't need this kind of ID just in order to vote.

I have a full licence, but I had to update my 32-year-old paper version to the new photo card type when I moved house. At the time I'd a sprained ankle, so instead of visiting a photo booth I asked a friend to pop round and take a bunch of pictures of me sitting in my wheelie against a plain wall. I uploaded the least hideous one, and the government website accepted it (along with photos of various ID documents) without issue. So it does appear possible for people who can't easily get out to be issued with a driving licence.

 

What a palaver, though! And all introduced to deal with a "problem" which doesn't actually exist worth speaking of

But talking of ID, having recently moved house, I thought I'd open a new savings account with a building society I was already a member of. I was stunned to find I couldn't do so any more, simply because I'd moved house (and didn't have a photo driving licence or a passport). Going on the register of electors didn't make any difference, apparently - I still couldn't apply. I was effectively told that this would be the situation for 3 years until I'd met the requirement for living at the new address. So in the end I gave up and got my paper driving licence (which I never use) replaced with a photo one, which cost about £20 (I think, although they don't appear to have cashed my cheque!). I'm wondering if this Voter Authority Certificate will in future be acceptable as evidence of ID: I think it ought to be.

 

The issue is that organisations, government bodies, etc now insist on photo ID.

My cousin had to apply for a provisional driving licence for her elderly mum-in-law when was widowed, as the combination of an insistence on photo ID and some of the couple's accounts and paperwork only being in the late husband's name meant she was really struggling to sort out her affairs. 'Simple' tasks like closing a couple of his old savings accounts became time-consuming rigmaroles, even with a death certificate, a will, and what she thought was ample proof of her name and the address she'd lived at for half a century.

Basically, you need an identity card in a country that doesn't want identity cards, for everything from borrowing hundreds of thousands of pounds for a house to picking up a £6.99 click-and-collect order from Screwfix.