How to vote

How to vote at a polling station

The polling station is the place where you go to vote. It could be a school, hall, community centre or a portable cabin. 

Find your polling station.

If you are registered to vote at a polling station, you will get a poll card about five weeks before an election.

The poll card tells you when the election is, and where your polling station is.

New requirements for voters to provide photographic identification at polling stations

It is a legal requirement for you to provide photographic identifcation before you can vote at a polling station.

For more information, see new requirements for voters to provide photographic identification at polling stations.

Marking your ballot paper

Ballot papers can be marked with a pencil or pen.

Pencils are usually provided inside polling stations for practical reasons, including:

  • ink pens may dry out or spill
  • when the voter folds the ballot paper, ink may transfer to elsewhere on the ballot paper - this could cause the vote to be rejected (for example, if it looks like they have voted for more candidates than allowed)

Pens are available from the Presiding Officer in the polling station, or you can bring your own pen with you.

There is legislation to prevent and detect tampering with ballot papers:

  • seals must be attached to ballot boxes
  • candidates and agents can be present at the close of poll and can attach their own seals if they wish
  • at the count, candidates and agents can check their seals before the ballot boxes are opened

Your vote is yours alone

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ9swcfgt20"]

By post

If you have applied to vote by post, you will get a postal poll card about five weeks before an election. You will then get your postal voting pack about two weeks before election day.

Return your application form to the Elections Office by either:

  • Post: Elections Office, South Tyneside Council, Town Hall, Westoe Road, South Shields, NE33 2RL
  • Email a scanned copy to: elections@southtyneside.gov.uk
  1. When you get your postal vote, remove the contents from the outer envelope. The envelope will contain:
    • a postal voting statement with your ballot paper attached
    • a ballot paper envelope marked A
    • a return envelope marked B
  2. Detach the ballot paper from the postal voting statement
  3. On the postal voting statement, fill in your date of birth and signature (this is to prevent fraud - you have already given these when you completed your postal application form)
  4. Read the instructions on the top of the ballot paper and mark a cross against the candidate or candidates you wish to vote for (with a pen or pencil)
  5. Put the ballot paper into envelope A, with the number printed on the back of the ballot paper showing through the window
  6. Seal the ballot paper envelope A and put it and the postal voting statement into the return envelope B, with the return address showing through the window

Post your postal voting pack as soon as possible to make sure it is received before election day.

If you forget to post your postal voting pack, you can hand it in at any polling station in South Tyneside on election day. 

To find a priority post box, visit Royal Mail: Services near you.

Ask someone else to vote on your behalf (proxy vote)

If you're unable to vote in person you can ask someone to vote on your behalf. This is called a proxy vote.

Return your application form to the Elections Office by either:

  • Post: Elections Office, South Tyneside Council, Town Hall, Westoe Road, South Shields, NE33 2RL
  • Email a scanned copy to: elections@southtyneside.gov.uk

For more information visit GOV.UK: Apply to vote by proxy.

Your proxy must show their photo ID in the polling station to be able to be given your ballot paper.  For more information see Voter ID: New requirement for voters to provide photographic identification at polling stations or visit Electoral Commission - Voter ID .

Accessible voting for all

Anyone who's eligible to vote on polling day should be able to do so independently.

Polling station staff are trained to help any voter who asks for it.

Each polling station will have the following equipment to help voters with disabilities vote easily.

  • Pencil grips
  • A tactile voting device
  • A large print copy of the ballot paper
  • An audio device (to listen to an audio description of the ballot paper)
  • A magnifying glass
  • Additional lighting if needed for the polling booth
  • Seating (where space allows)
  • Coloured overlay sheets for people with dyslexia
  • An easy read guide explaining how to vote
  • A polling station support booklet that voters can download and hand to polling station staff so they can understand what help the voter needs

The Electoral Commission have produced an easy read voter booklet a Voter ID guide - large print booklet, and a polling station support booklet which you can download.

In the videos below, Harry and Charlotte from Mencap talk about their experiences of voting in a polling station and how they think this can be improved for people with a learning disability.

In the video below, Hugh from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) talks about his experience of voting in a polling station and how this can be improved for people with a visual impairment.

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJyOgWdDJ2I"]

This year Mencap has joined with My Vote My Voice, which brings together different charities to campaign to remove voting barriers and raise awareness about people with learning disabilities and autistic people's right to vote. 

For more information, see Mencap: Guides to voting.

BSL Voting Guides

The Electoral Commission and the British Deaf Association have produced a number of videos explaining how to vote and voting procedures for the Local Government elections. 

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dd-bIO70IU"]

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRyl3QKSVO8&list=PLm0G6YKL5VxIHsL_-6Hdq_xtdMXvIppIj&index=2"]

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3P8rcp-otOg&list=PLm0G6YKL5VxIHsL_-6Hdq_xtdMXvIppIj&index=3"]

[youtube link="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCLfIJYKPP0&list=PLm0G6YKL5VxIHsL_-6Hdq_xtdMXvIppIj&index=4"]

Voter ID - Voter Authority Certificate

The Electoral Commission have produced an easy read guide to help voters apply for a Voter Authority Certificate. 

The Electoral Commission easy read guide to apply for a voter authority certificate (PDF) [1MB]

For more information about how to apply, please see Voter ID: New requirement for voters to provide photographic identification at polling stations .

Electoral fraud

Your vote belongs to you. It doesn't belong to anyone who:

  • intimidates you
  • tries to bribe you
  • is pretending to be you

When someone deliberately tries to cheat at an election in this way, it could be electoral fraud.

What electoral fraud includes

Electoral fraud can include:

  • making false statements about the personal character of a candidate
  • offering an incentive to someone to get them to vote, to vote a certain way, or to stop them from voting
  • interfering with postal votes
  • including false statements or signatures on a candidate's nomination forms
  • registering to vote under a false name or without someone's consent
  • influencing someone to vote against their will
  • pretending to be someone else and using their vote

Election fraud is a serious issue and offenders can be sent to prison.

What to do if someone tries to take your vote

If someone tries to take your vote, or the vote of anyone you know, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or visit  Crimestoppers: Your vote is yours alone.