The following people are entitled to attend the opening of returned postal votes:
you
your election agent or a person appointed by you to attend in their place.1
agents you have appointed to attend openings on your behalf.2
For details on how to appoint these agents see Appointing postal voting agents.
Duty to maintain secrecy during postal vote opening sessions
Ballot papers will be kept face down throughout a postal vote opening session.3
Anyone attending an opening session has a duty to maintain secrecy and must not:
obtain
attempt to obtain
communicate at any time to another person
any information relating to the number or other unique identifying mark on the back of a ballot paper4
any information as to the official mark on a postal ballot paper before the close of poll5
disclose how any particular ballot paper has been marked or pass on any such information gained from the session.
It follows therefore that keeping a tally of how ballot papers have been marked is not allowed.
Anyone found guilty of breaching these requirements can face a fine, or may be imprisoned for up to six months. In England and Wales, the fine is unlimited; in Scotland, it is up to £5,000.6
1. Regulation 68 Representation of the People Regulations (England and Wales) 2001 (RPR (E&W 2001), Regulation 68 Representation of the People Regulations (Scotland) 2001 (RPR (S) 2001) ↩ Back to content at footnote 1