Go to navigation
Elections and registration
What is the Register?
The Electoral Register is a list of people eligible
to vote in elections within Medway. The Electoral Registration
Officer has a statutory duty to compile the register and keep it
up-to-date by carrying out an annual
canvass of households from September to November.
A revised register is published by 1 December each year.
How to register
Between September and early November, we conduct our Annual
Canvass, at which time every household is sent a registration form in order for the Electoral
Registration Officer to compile a revised Register of Electors. You
are required by law to respond each year regardless of changes or
not.
You are asked to include all eligible residents and inform us of
any changes, for example, residents may have moved out, or
married and changed their name.
If there are no changes to be made your details can be confirmed
by telephone or via the internet, using the details printed on the
registration form sent to you.
If you fail to respond to to the first letter, a reminder will
be sent. If you fail to respond to the second letter, a
personal canvasser will be sent.
Please be aware, this costs money which affects the level of
council tax, so you can save money by responding to the first form
using the methods mentioned above. If you have not registered or
updated your details since 2008 you may not be on the register.
This means:
- You lose your right to vote.
- You may encounter problems when opening a bank account or
obtaining credit.
Who can register?
To go on the electoral register you must be:
You must not be subject to any legal incapacity to vote.
Citizens of EU member states other than British or Irish are
only eligible to vote in local government elections.
Where to register?
You should register at your main address.
If you have moved to a residential home, then that would be your
main address.
If you live an equal amount of time in two properties, you can
register at both but you must not vote more than once in the same
election. This means that you can vote in local elections at both
addresses as long as they are in different local authority areas
but you cannot vote at both addresses in a parliamentary
election.
If you spend more time at one property than the other, you
should register at the one where you spend most time. On the voter
registration form for the address where you spend less time, you
should tick the box at the bottom of the form for "registered
elsewhere".
If you are temporarily living in a rented house, you
should continue to register at your main address. Please make sure
that your mail is suitably redirected so that you receive all
relevant correspondence from the council.
HM Armed Forces
If you are in the armed forces, you can register by means of a
service
declaration or choose to register as an ordinary elector as
above instead. If you decide to register as an member of HM Armed
Forces you may need to appoint a proxy or ask for a postal vote if
you are unlikely to be in the UK when an election is called.
Crown Servants
If you are a Crown
Servant or British Council employee and posted overseas, both
you and your spouse or civil partner are entitled to register.
Overseas
If you are a British citizen and currently reside overseas you can still register
if you satisfy the criteria.
Local connection
A declaration of local connection relates to a person who gives a
property at which they have resided or would but for their
circumstances.
Anonymous registration
There is a provision in law that enables individuals to register
anonymously under certain circumstances.
Please contact Electoral Services for more information on how to
register anonymously.
Edited and Full register
There are two types of register: the full and
edited versions.
Absent voting
Find out how to apply for a postal or proxy vote on a temporary or permanent
basis.
Add this page to my Quick Links:
Add page
Send this page to a friend:
Send