Guidance for Candidates at Parish council elections in England

During the campaign, you may…

  • Encourage people who are not on the electoral register to apply for registration. The deadline for registering to vote in time for an election is 12 working days before the poll.1 Individuals can register online at https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
  • Remind voters who wish to vote in person that they will be required to produce an accepted form of photographic ID to prove their identity before they will be issued with a ballot paper. Where an individual does not have or does not wish to use an accepted form of photographic ID, they can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate. For more information on the accepted forms of photographic ID and Voter Authority Certificates see our guidance for polling day
  • Help voters with information about postal and proxy voting and encourage voters to apply online at https://www.gov.uk/vote-uk-election. The deadline for applying for a postal vote for the elections is 5pm, 11 working days before the poll.2 The deadline for applying for a proxy vote for the elections is 5pm, 6 working days before the poll,3 although in some circumstances electors may apply for an emergency proxy up to 5pm on polling day.4 An elector can apply for an emergency proxy if, after 5pm, 6 working days before the poll they have had a medical emergency or have been called away on business,  or the photographic ID that they intended to use in the polling station becomes unavailable and they do not have alternative form of accepted photographic ID.
  • Find more information about who can register to vote and postal and proxy voting on our website https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter
     
Last updated: 1 December 2023