Register to Vote Today!
It takes five minutes to register to vote. The next government will be voted in for five years. Register to vote today.
Register to Vote
At the last General Election, 10.4 million people voted for Labour, 14 million for the Conservatives, 3.7 million for the Liberal Democrats, 1.2 million for the SNP, and 865,000 for the Greens.
15.5 million of the UK’s registered electors did not vote at all. An estimated further 10 million eligible voters are not correctly registered to vote.
In a country where the biggest winner at the last election was ‘Did Not Vote’, there is work to be done to ensure everyone has their say. This page explains how to register to vote, who can register to vote, and what you need in order to vote.
Registering to vote takes about five minutes. The Government we vote in lasts for up to five years.
Who Can Register to Vote?
Anyone aged 18 or over can vote and must register. If you are aged 16 or 17, you can also register so you can vote immediately after your 18th birthday.
You can only register to vote at the address you currently live at. If you do change addresses, you can now re-register as soon as you move.
If you are a student or own more than one home, you may be able to register at multiple addresses but may only vote in one area.
Find your constituency or local council ward with Electoral Calculus’s Postcode lookup.
Commonwealth Citizens
Commonwealth citizens living here can register to vote and participate in all UK elections. If you are a citizen of one of the following countries, please consider registering to vote.
Commonwealth countries
- Anguilla
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Australia
- The Bahamas
- Bangladesh
- Barbados
- Belize
- Bermuda
- Botswana
- British Antarctic Territory
- British Indian Ocean Territory
- British Virgin Islands
- Brunei
- Canada
- Cameroon
- Cayman Islands
- The Channel Islands (including Jersey, Guernsey, Sark, Alderney, Herm and the other inhabited Channel Islands)
- Cyprus
- Dominica
- Eswatini
- Falkland Islands
- Fiji
- The Gambia
- Ghana
- Gibraltar
- Grenada
- Guyana
- India
- Isle of Man
- Jamaica
- Kenya
- Kiribati
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- Malaysia
- Maldives
- Malta
- Mauritius
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
- Pakistan
- Papua New Guinea
- Pitcairn Island
- Rwanda
- St Christopher and Nevis
- St Helena and dependencies (Ascension Island and Tristan da Cunha)
- St Lucia
- St Vincent and the Grenadines
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Singapore
- Solomon Islands
- South Africa
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Sovereign base areas on Cyprus
- Sri Lanka
- Tanzania
- Tonga
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Turks and Caicos Islands
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Vanuatu
- Western Samoa
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
EU Citizens
EU citizens living here cannot vote in UK Parliamentary elections (with the exception of those who are also citizens of the Republic of Ireland or a Commonwealth country) but can still register to vote and participate in local elections: including local council, mayoral, and London Assembly elections.
EU Countries
- Austria
- Belgium
- Bulgaria
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- France
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Italy
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Luxembourg
- The Netherlands
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Sweden
Hong Kong Citizens
Hong Kong residents who became British Citizens or British Nationals (overseas) can also register to vote. Those who became citizens of the People’s Republic of China cannot register.
How to Vote
nce you register to vote, there are three ways to cast your ballot:
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By postal ballot
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In-person at a polling station
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By proxy (asking someone else to cast your ballot for you)
Apply for a Postal Vote
If you want to vote by post, you can apply for a postal vote. This is one of the quickest and easiest ways to have your say in elections. Save yourself a walk to the polling station and apply today!
Apply for a postal vote.
Remember: if you forget to post your ballot by the deadline, you can also submit it in-person at your local polling station until 10pm on election day.
Vote In-Person
In-person voting happens at your local polling station (usually in a public building, such as a school or local hall).
Find your polling station.
You’ll be sent a poll card just prior to an election or referendum telling you when to vote and the polling station you need to vote at. Please note:
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You do not have to take your poll card to the polling station in order to vote.
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You can still vote if you have lost your card.
If you have not received a poll card, you can contact the local Electoral Registration Office.
Apply for a Proxy Vote
If you cannot vote in–person, you can apply for a proxy vote so that someone else can cast your ballot on your behalf.
Apply for a proxy vote.
You can only apply for a proxy vote if you are disabled, absent on polling day, have a medical issue, or cannot vote in-person due to your work or military service. You need to tell your proxy how you want them to vote for you so make sure your proxy is someone you trust to vote on your behalf!
Overseas Voters
If you are abroad temporarily during an election period, you should register for a postal or proxy vote. If you are moving or living abroad, you can register as an overseas voter and will need to choose whether you would rather vote via post or proxy.
Register as an overseas voter.
Voter ID
Following the Government’s Elections Act 2023, you now need to show photo ID when voting in–person in some elections and referendums in England, Scotland and Wales. In order to vote, you will need to take one of the following along with you to the polling station:
- Passport issued by UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, a British Overseas Territory, EEA state or Commonwealth country
- UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or EEA Driving Licence
- Biometric Immigration Document
- ID card bearing Proof of Age Standards Scheme hologram (a Pass Card)
- Ministry of Defence Form 90 (Defence Identity Card)
- A Blue Badge
- National Identity Card issued by an EEA state
- An Older Person’s Bus Pass
- A Disabled Person’s Bus Pass
- An Oyster 60+ Card
- A Freedom Pass
If you don’t have any of the above forms of ID, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate: an A4 paper document to verify your name, photograph, and identity.
Register to Vote Today!
It takes five minutes to register to vote. The next government will be voted in for five years. Register to vote today.