Guidance for Returning Officers administering a Scottish Parliament election

This section of the guidance covers the statutory actions that must take place to enable the election timetable to formally commence.

This includes:

• the publication of the notice of election
• the requirement to deliver poll cards as soon as is practicable after the notice of election is published

We have published a timetable for the May 2026 scheduled Scottish Parliament election. You can find the timetable in the starting the election timetable section of the resources page.