Polling station opening hours, emergency proxy votes and other issues

Polling stations are open from 7am until 10pm on election day, tomorrow, May 7th, and the address of each one appears on the poll card sent to each elector a few weeks before the election.

Maps showing the locations of the polling stations are available on the council’s ‘Elections and voting’ webpages.

All polling stations have wheelchair access and at least one booth that is wider with a lower shelf to accommodate the needs a people with disabilities. In addition, there are large print ballot papers and tactile devices for people with visual problems.

If you have applied for and have been given a postal vote, your ballot paper has been sent to you before 7 May in time for you to complete it and return it to the Returning Officer.

The vote has to be with the Returning Officer by the close of poll (10pm) on 7 May.

If you decide to vote by post you will not be able to vote at a polling station but you can hand your postal ballot paper into any polling station in your constituency. It is important to remember that if you decide to vote by post you will not be able to vote at a polling station. However, rather than post it, you can hand the ballot paper into a polling station in your ward in a local election or constituency in a general election.

More information about voting by post and a set of Frequently Asked Questions about voting by post in the forthcoming general election are on the council’s ‘Voting by post’ webpages.

In certain circumstances, you can appoint someone else to vote for you. This is called voting by proxy or a proxy vote, however you must have a valid reason for having a proxy vote such as a disability or be working away. You can have a permanent proxy or you can appoint a proxy for one election. If you make a permanent arrangement, you will need your doctor or employer to support your application. If you appoint a proxy for just one election, you do not need anyone to support your application.

The person you wish to appoint as your proxy can only act as proxy if they are (or will be) registered to vote themselves.

The deadline for new or amended proxy vote applications was 5pm on 28 April 2015. If you have already registered to vote by post, you will not be able to apply to vote by proxy as the deadline to amend your postal voting arrangement has now passed.

If you are taken ill or get unexpected work commitments after the deadline for applying for a proxy vote which prevents you from attending the polling station on election day, you caappoint a proxy to vote for you. You will need a doctor or employer to support your application.

The deadline to apply for an emergency proxy for the elections is 5pm on 7 May. Please contact the council’s Electoral Services at elections@hounslow.gov.uk or on 020 8583 2828 if you require an emergency proxy vote. Emergency Proxy application forms can be downloaded from the about my vote website.

Poll cards - the document sent to all registered voters shortly before an election which provide information including the date of the election and the location and opening times of the polling station – have been issued to everyone who was included in the electoral role by 17 April.

If you completed your application after Wednesday 8 April, your poll card was due to be posted on Friday 1 May. If you have changed your voting arrangement since you received your pollcard, you will not be issued with an updated poll card.

You do not need a poll card to vote, but if you are unsure which polling station you should vote at, please contact the council’s Electoral Services at elections@hounslow.gov.uk or on 020 8583 2828

You can no longer register to vote on 7 May but you can still register for other future elections. To register go to www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. It should only take a few minutes and you only need your National Insurance Number and date of birth to complete the application.

If you live in the London Borough of Hounslow and want to check if you’re registered to vote in the general election, please contact the council’s Electoral Services at elections@hounslow.gov.uk or on 020 8583 2828.

May 6, 2015