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Voting

Register to Vote

In order to vote in UK Elections and Referendums, you need to apply to have your name included on the Register of Electors. This is known as registering to vote. It is a legal requirement to supply the required information.

The simplest way to register is by going online. It only takes a few minutes to register but you will need to have your Date of Birth and National Insurance Number to hand as you won't be able to complete your application without it:

Considerations - Things to be aware of

  • If you are not registered you will not be able to vote at any Election.
  • You are not automatically registered even if you pay Council Tax.
  • You can register to vote if you are 16 years old or over, and a British, Irish, Commonwealth or European Union citizen.
  • If you are 16 or 17, you can register now but you are not allowed to vote until you are 18.

Postal Vote

Anyone who is registered to vote may apply for a postal vote instead of voting at a polling station. If you know that you will not be able to vote in person at a polling station, you should apply for a postal vote as soon as an Election is announced or as soon as you become aware that you will be unable to vote in person on polling day. You can apply for a postal vote at any time.

To qualify for a postal vote, you must be registered to vote. You can register to vote online.

You may have a postal vote:

  • for up to three years
  • for a fixed period of time up to three years
  • just for one election.

Apply for a postal vote

The quickest and easiest way to apply for a postal vote is online. You will be required to provide your date of birth and national insurance number.

Apply online for a postal vote

Alternatively, you can apply for a postal vote using a paper application form. Please contact the Electoral Services Team on 01246 217069 or 01246 217068 for a paper application form.

Your identity will be checked as part of the application process. We will contact you if we need any further information.

Last date to apply for a postal vote

You can apply up to 5pm, 11 working days before the day of the election however we advise you to apply as early as possible. Postal Votes are usually sent out a week or two before Polling Day, so if you are not at home during this time you should consider appointing a proxy to vote on your behalf

Proxy Vote

You may still be able to vote even if you are unable to get to your polling station on Polling Day for a particular Election by applying for a proxy vote (a proxy is someone who votes on your behalf). You will only be able to appoint a proxy for one Election, unless it is on the grounds of medical or employment reasons.

The quickest and easiest way to apply for a proxy vote is online. Apply online for a proxy vote.

To be eligible for a proxy vote, the proxy and the elector must be registered to vote. If you require further information, please contact us before applying to vote by proxy.

Armed Forces Personnel

If you are a member of the Armed Forces and are registered as an elector, you will be entitled to vote in Parliamentary, Local Elections in the UK.

Service personnel and their spouses’ resident in the UK may register in either of two ways:

  1. they may be included as an ordinary elector by completing an individual registration application, or
  2. they may register as service voters

In order to register as a service voter you will need to complete a service declaration every 5 years. If you are likely to be posted overseas, it is advisable to apply to vote by post or by proxy.

Overseas Electors

If you are a British Citizen living abroad, you can apply to be an Overseas Elector.

From 16 January 2024 and the removal of the 15-year limit, if you are a British Citizen living overseas who has previously lived in the UK or been registered to vote in the UK, you can register to vote.

A number of changes to voting from overseas now apply:

  • You can register to vote if you previously lived in the UK but were not registered to vote.
  • You can register to vote as an overseas elector no matter how long ago you left the UK or were last registered to vote in the UK.
  • Your overseas declaration is now valid for three years, lasting until 1 November in the third year after it takes effect
  • You can now register online Register to vote - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

These changes apply to:

  • UK Parliamentary General Elections
  • By-Elections
  • Recall Petitions

They do not apply to local elections.

Overseas electors must remember to apply separately to vote by post (postal vote), or to apply for someone to vote on their behalf (proxy vote), unless they intend to return home to vote in person.

Postal ballot papers are usually sent to overseas electors two to three weeks before polling day. Overseas electors MUST be sure their marked postal ballot paper will reach us before 10pm on polling day, or it will not be counted.

Students

Students who are away at university or college can remain registered at their family home and may also register at their student accommodation. You cannot vote twice in a UK Parliamentary. You would be committing an offence if you voted twice. However, you can vote in a Local Government Election both at home and your term-time address, as long as they are in different Local Government areas. Students may also wish to consider the option of a postal vote.

Register of Electors

The Register of Electors contains the names and addresses of all those who have registered to vote within the North East Derbyshire District.

  • Each year after completion of the Annual Canvass, the revised Register of Electors is published on 1st December.
  • Monthly Updates to the Register of Electors are also published between January and September. This is known as Rolling Registration.
  • There are no Monthly Updates to the Register of Electors in October and November.

Two versions of the Register of Electors are compiled:

  1. The Full Register lists everybody who is eligible to vote, a copy is available at our District Council Offices, 2013 Mill Lane, Wingerworth, Chesterfield S42 6NG for public inspection in accordance with legal requirements. Inspection of the register is strictly under supervision and only handwritten notes can be taken. You will not be permitted to photocopy or take images of any part of the register. It is not permissible for an electronic search to be carried out.
  2. The Open Register leaves out names and addresses of people who have made a request to be excluded from this version of the register. The Open Register can be bought by anyone for any purpose.

Moving House

If you move house after the Register of Electors is published on 1st December each year, you can apply to be registered in respect of your new address under the Rolling Registration which takes approximately four to six weeks to take effect.

You can register online at your new address or contact us for a printed form.

Once an Election has been called and you find out that you are not currently registered, you can apply to register up to 12 days before the Election.

Benefits of being a registered voter

Many of the major credit firms check your address against the Register of Electors and you may be refused a loan, mobile phone agreement, mortgage, bank account, etc. if you are not registered.

Being registered also provides you with the chance to have your say about how your local council or the government is run and how they impact on services such as education, housing, public transport, planning and leisure facilities, amongst others.