We have a statutory duty to collect data and publish reports about elections that take place across the UK. We also choose to report on other elections.

What we report on

We have a statutory duty to report on the administration of :

  • UK Parliament elections
  • recall petitions
  • Police and Crime Commissioner elections
  • council elections in Scotland
  • Scottish Parliament elections
  • Northern Ireland Assembly elections
  • Senedd elections
  • referendums (if they’re held under the Political Parties Elections & Referendums Act (PPERA) 2000)

In the past, we have chosen to report on:

  • local council elections in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
  • local and combined authority mayoral elections
  • Greater London Authority (GLA) elections

What our reports include

Our reports aim to look at the experience of people voting and campaigning at elections, and of people delivering the elections.

We carry out a public opinion survey to find out voters’ views about elections, including whether they thought it was well run and how confident they felt about it.

We also ask candidates and campaigners to give us feedback, and we send them a survey after the election.

Councils, who are responsible for the running the elections, have to provide data to us about electoral registration, postal voting and turnout. We ask them to fill out a survey, and also ask for feedback from people who worked at the election, such as polling station staff.

We usually aim to publish our reports on elections within six months of polling day.