Registering to Vote

A lot of councils update their voting register every autumn, and I get a lot of questions about how to register to vote, so now seems like a good time to remind everyone about some of the basics.  In the end, if you cannot vote, you cannot vote for the Pirate Party!  We want to see as many supporters as possible registered to vote and able to use that vote when the general election is called.

All the information on how to register can be found on the website http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk/. Read on for some tips and observations about why people fail to vote in practice.

The electoral register is managed at a local level.  Most people are registered because the council sends a form to their house, and they fill in the details and return the form in the post.  If you have not moved from the address where you were registered before, chances are your details will be pre-printed on the form, and all you need to do is to confirm the details are correct.  If not, then add your details.  It is the law that these forms must be completed correctly.  Of course, punishment is rare, but the important thing is that if you share a house, there is a legal right for you to have your name included on the form.  Nobody has the right to deny your registration to vote.

Nobody needs to wait for the council's letter in order to register.  People can just write directly to the council to register, at any time of year.  This is important because some people will move around during the year, and will want to change where they vote.  Lots of people forget to re-register at their new address, and then either have to travel to vote, or else they miss out completely.  There is a very useful feature on the aboutmyvote website that tells you who to register with, based on your postcode.

Students should beware on missing out on their vote.  Because they move around more than other people do, they may not receive a polling card as expected, and hence lots of students miss out on exercising their democratic right.  Students may be registered at their old digs or at their parents' house.  If you are a student, try to remember to re-register if you move, and think carefully about whether you need a postal vote or want to travel to vote in your parents' constituency if you are still registered there.

People can register as young as 16, even though they cannot vote until aged 18.  The reason for this is to ensure that nobody misses out because of delays in registration - if the election is held the same day as your 18th birthday, you have the right to vote on that day.

People living overseas also tend to miss out more than most.  If you are a UK citizen living abroad, but were registered to vote at a UK address in the last 15 years, you can still vote in UK elections by registering at that old address.  There are also postal votes and votes by proxy, so you can vote even if you are outside the UK on the day of the election.  Again, all the details for people about eligible overseas voters can be found at the aboutmyvote website.

One important thing to note is that you should not leave it too late to register.  It obviously takes councils time and money to update their register, so do not wait until the election is called and then try to be added to the electoral roll. 

The party is forming now, and it is a priority that we give good information to supporters on how to register and how to vote, so we can maximize the number of votes we get.  One thing to think about is that some people may have a choice of where in the country they register; as we will not be able to field candidates in every seat, when we announce where we will be competing, you may want to re-register so you can vote in those constituencies.  Do not delay in registering to vote.  Although most commentators expect the election will be April next year, it might be this autumn.  In the coming weeks it will be a priority for the party and the youth wing to include on the website some good useful information on how to register, because it is a question we get a lot, and I will be regularly reminding people of the need to register - so apologies to those of you who do not need reminding.  Your vote is important, do not lose it!