Scottish Parliamentary elections

General elections to the Scottish Parliament are held every four years. There are a total of 129 elected Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) - 73 of which are constituency members elected using the first-past-the-post system. The remaining 56 are regional members who are elected using the party list system.

On 3 May 2007, elections to the Scottish Parliament took place alongside elections to each of Scotland's 32 councils. We produced:

guidance products for use by Returning Officers, electoral administrators and support staff
information for candidates and agents

Guidance for Returning Officers

We produced a guidance manual for Returning Officers and electoral administrators to assist with particular points of practice and procedure in the running of the combined Scottish Parliamentary and local government elections on 3 May 2007. The Commission has no role in providing guidance for local government elections in Scotland; the advice relating to local government elections was included at the request of the Scottish Executive.

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part A - Context (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part B - Preparing for the elections (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part C - Action before the poll (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part D - Absent voting (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part E - The poll (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part F - The count (PDF)

Guidance for Returning Officers - Part G - After the declaration of results (PDF)