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Tuesday , March , 19 2024
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Registering to Vote

Individual Electoral Registration

The introduction of Individual Electoral Registration (IER) in Great Britain modernises the way people register to vote, helps to tackle electoral fraud and improves confidence in the electoral register.

To register to vote using the new system you’ll need your date of birth and National Insurance number. You may also need your passport if you’re living abroad. These details are checked against government records to help make sure that registrations are genuine. Registering takes around five minutes.

You must be

  • normally resident in the Council's area
  • over 16 (but you cannot vote until your 18th birthday)
  • a British or Commonwealth citizen
  • a citizen of the Irish Republic or of another European Union Member State.

If you are a student studying away from home or if you have a second home where you live regularly, you can register at more than one address but you cannot vote more than once at the same election.

You’ll need to register using a different form if you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland.

You can also watch a demonstration of the new online registration system.

About the Electoral Register

The Electoral Register (also known as the Electoral Roll) is the list of everyone who is entitled to vote. The register for the City Council's area has around 80,000 names and includes the whole of Carlisle constituency and part of Penrith and the Border constituency.

If you are not included on the register, you will not be able to vote.

There are two versions of the electoral register - the full register and the open register (formerly known as the edited register).

The full register lists the name and address of everyone who is registered to vote. Anyone can look at it, but it is a criminal offence to supply or use copies for purposes other than those set down by law. Credit reference agencies can use it to check your name and address if you are applying for credit. It can also be used for law enforcement.

The open register is available for general sale and can be used for any purpose. It can be bought by any person, company or organisation, and can be used for commercial activities such as marketing.

The full register is available for inspection under supervision at the Customer Contact Centre in the Civic Centre, Carlisle, during normal office hours (Monday to Thursday - 9am to 5pm; Friday - 9am to 4pm).

The edited register can also be inspected at the County Library in The Lanes, Carlisle.

The Register of Electors is not published on the internet. This is because it is an offence to make copies of the full register other than by handwritten notes. It is also an offence to use handwritten notes for marketing purposes. For full details, see the Representation of the People Regulations 2001 (external link).

 

 

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