Parliamentary Election 2024

Parliamentary Election – Thursday 4 July 2024

The Parliamentary election will take place on Thursday 4 July 2024. Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm.

You can only vote if your name is on the Register of Electors and you are eligible to vote in Parliamentary Elections.

Election Notices

Election notices will appear below, as and when published:

Postal Voting

We know postal voters are keen to know when their UK Parliamentary general election postal vote pack will arrive. This will depend on:

when your application was processed
how long post takes to be delivered to you – particularly if you are an overseas voter.

Existing postal voters plus applications receive and approved by 12pm on Wednesday 5 June:

If you are an overseas elector, your postal vote pack was sent out on Tuesday 11 June.
If you live in the UK, your postal vote pack will be sent on Tuesday 18 June.

Applications received and approved after 12pm on Wednesday 5 June and by the deadline of 5pm on Wednesday 19 June:

If you are an overseas elector, postal vote packs will be sent out daily from Wednesday 19 June as applications are approved.
If you live in the UK, your postal vote pack will be sent on Tuesday 25 June.

Why aren’t postal votes sent out as soon as an application comes in?

Candidate nominations closed at 4pm on Friday 7 June, so ballot papers could only be finalised and sent to print after this time.

Due to the short notice for the 4 July UK Parliamentary General Election, specialist election printers and Royal Mail are working at capacity to print and deliver over 8 million postal votes across the UK.

It’s a complicated process, with personalised postal vote statements matched with the correct ballot paper. There is also a need to produce personalised envelopes and instruction sheets. We also need to carry out crucial security checks which add to the time needed to prepare and send votes out.

Postal votes for overseas electors have early priority because of the extra time it takes for international mail to be delivered and returned.

What if I’m going on holiday before my vote is likely to arrive?

If you applied for a postal vote and don’t think you’ll be home to return it by post on Thursday 4 July, you can drop your completed postal vote pack in to your polling station between 7am and 10pm on Thursday 4 July. You must complete a form when you hand it in.

If you won’t be back in time to use your postal vote, you can instead appoint someone you trust as a proxy to vote on your behalf. You will need to

cancel your postal vote by 5pm on Wednesday 19 June. This will happen automatically when you appoint a proxy, but you can contact us to talk about other options to cancel.
make a proxy application by 5pm on Wednesday 26 June
the person you appoint as a proxy must:
- be a registered parliamentary elector who can vote in this election.
- only be a proxy for up to two electors living in the UK, plus up to two people living abroad, or up to four people living abroad.
Your proxy can:
- vote in person on your behalf at your polling station. They will have to show their own accepted form of photo ID to be able to vote or
- vote by post for you but your proxy must apply for a proxy postal vote by 5pm on Wednesday 19 June.

Voting on Thursday 4 July 2024

You need photo ID to vote at the election this July

The UK Government introduced a requirement in 2023 for voters to show photo ID when voting at a polling station at all elections in England.

This new requirement will apply again at the Parliamentary election taking place on Thursday 4 July 2024.

At this election you will need to bring acceptable photo ID to be able to vote at a polling station. Those voting by postal vote do not need to provide ID as separate security measures are already in place for voting by post.

Which forms of ID can I use to vote at a polling station?

You may already have a form of photo ID that is acceptable. You can use any of the following:

Passport
Driving licence (including provisional license)
Blue badge
Certain concessionary travel cards
Identity card with PASS mark (Proof of Age Standards Scheme)
Biometric Immigration document
Defence identity card
Certain national identity cards

For more information on which forms of photo ID will be accepted, visit The Electoral Commission website or call their helpline on 0800 328 0280.

If you have a form of accepted ID that is out of date but still looks like you, you can still use it to vote.

You must show the original version of your photo ID when voting and not a photocopy.

What if I don’t have an accepted form of photo ID?

If you don’t already have an accepted form of photo ID, or you’re not sure whether your photo ID still looks like you, you can apply for a free voter ID document, known as a Voter Authority Certificate.

You need to be registered to vote before you apply for a Voter Authority Certificate. If you are not registered to vote already, you can register online. The deadline to register to vote for this election is 11:59pm on Tuesday 18 June.

You can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate online.

Alternatively, you can complete a paper application form and send this to the Electoral Services team. If you need any help applying for a Voter Authority Certificate or want to request an application form, contact the Electoral Services team by emailing elections@rushcliffe.gov.uk or calling 0115 981 9911.

The deadline to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate for use at this election is 5pm on Wednesday 26 June, but you should apply as soon as possible in case we need to check any details with you.

What information do I need to give when I apply for a Voter Authority Certificate?

When applying for a Voter Authority Certificate, you will need to provide your:

Name
Address
Date of birth
National Insurance number

If you don’t know your National Insurance number, or don’t have one, you can still apply. However, we will contact you to request alternative proof of your identity.

You will also need to submit a passport type photograph with your application.

You can visit our Customer Service Centre on Gordon Road in West Bridgford to assist you with your application including the photo you need to complete the application.

What will happen at the polling station?

When you arrive at the polling station, a member of staff will:

Ask you for your name and address so they can find you on the electoral register
Ask for your photo ID or Voter Authority Certificate and check it is acceptable
If your ID is acceptable, they will give you your ballot paper and direct you to vote in a polling booth as usual

A private area will be available at the polling station, so you can choose to have your photo ID viewed in private if you like. This might be a separate room, or an area separated by a privacy screen, depending on the polling station.

Staff at the station are there to help. If you need assistance at any point, just ask.

How do I register to vote?

To vote in this election, you must be registered to vote by 11:59pm on Tuesday 18 June.

If you’ve never registered, have recently moved to a different address, or changed your name, register to vote online. You can also apply by completing a paper application form.

If you need help registering to vote, or want to request a paper application form, please contact the Electoral Services team by emailing elections@rushcliffe.gov.uk or calling 0115 981 9911.

Are there other ways to vote?

You can apply to vote by post or by proxy (where you appoint someone to vote on your behalf).

In order to vote by post, you’ll need to complete a postal vote application form and make sure we receive it by 5pm on Wednesday 19 June.

You can now apply for a postal vote online. If you are not able to complete the online application, you can download a paper application form from the Government website. You will need your National Insurance number to hand when applying to vote by post.

In order to vote by proxy, you’ll need to complete a proxy vote application form and make sure we receive it by 5pm on Wednesday 26 June.

In some circumstances, you can now apply for a proxy vote online. If you are not able to complete the online application, you can download a proxy vote application form from the Government website. You will need your National Insurance number to hand when applying to vote by proxy.

If you appoint a proxy to vote on your behalf, it is important to stress that the proxy will then need to vote at your allocated polling station in Rushcliffe. If they would prefer to vote by post then the proxy needs to fill in a postal proxy application form as well and this must be returned by the postal voting deadline of 5pm on Wednesday 19 June.

For more information about postal and proxy voting, visit The Electoral Commission website or call their helpline on 0800 328 0280.

Do you need support accessing your polling station?

If you have any accessibility needs when you visit your polling station, please let us know by emailing elections@rushcliffe.gov.uk or call us on 0115 981 9911.

When will my postal vote be sent out?

Overseas Electors

If we have received and approved a valid postal vote application by 12 noon on Wednesday 5 June

Postal votes will be sent out on - Tuesday 11 June

If received and approved after 12 noon on Wednesday 5 June and before the deadline of 5pm on Wednesday 19 June

Postal votes will be sent out on - Daily from Wednesday 19 June as applications are approved

UK Registered Electors

If we have received and approved a valid postal vote application by 12pm on Wednesday 5 June

Postal votes will be sent out on - Tuesday 18 June

If received and approved after 12pm on Wednesday 5 June and before the deadline of 5pm on Wednesday 19 June

Postal votes will be sent out on - Tuesday 25 June

If you are granted a postal vote and you would like assistance on how to complete your postal vote pack, this video may be helpful to you.

How do I become a candidate to stand in the election?

If you intend to stand as a candidate you must complete a nomination paper, consent to nomination, a home address form and any other relevant forms contained in the Candidates Nomination Pack together with a £500 deposit. The nominations pack is available by contacting the elections team. These must be submitted by 4pm on Friday 7 June. You must ensure that you make an appointment to submit your nomination paper. To make an appointment, please call 0115 981 9911.

Who are the candidates?

The Statement of Persons Nominated including the situations of polling stations and Notice of Poll will be published, no later than 5pm on Friday 7 June. (subject to no objections to nominations being received). This will contain the list of candidates standing in the election.

When is the counting of the votes?

The verification of the ballot boxes and counting of the votes for the Rushcliffe Constituency will take place at Rushcliffe Arena, Rugby Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham, NG2 7YG following the close of poll on Thursday 4 July 2024.

Firstly, the ballot boxes will be verified to ensure that the number of ballot papers in each box is the number that has been issued. Postal ballot papers that are to be included in the count will also be verified. Once all votes are verified, the ballot papers will be sorted and counted for each candidate.

When will I find out the result?

The Declaration of Result of Poll will be published as soon as possible following the conclusion of the count in the early hours of Friday 5 July.