Representation of the People Act 1983

Place and manner of voting at local government elections

31 Polling districts and stations at local government elections

(1) For elections of-county councillors (other than councillors of the Greater London Council), the county council may divide an electoral division into polling districts, and may alter any polling district, and for elections of London borough or district councillors the London borough or district council may divide the London borough or district or any ward thereof into polling districts, and may alter any polling district.

(2) In Scotland, for elections of regional or islands councillors the regional or islands council may divide an electoral division into polling districts and may alter any polling district, and for elections of district councillors the district council may divide a ward into polling districts and may alter any polling district; but in the absence of special circumstances those polling districts shall be those which were last designated for the purpose of parliamentary elections under section 18 above.

(3) Any power to constitute polling districts for the purpose of local government elections shall be exercised so that electors from any parliamentary polling district wholly or partly within the electoral area can, in the absence of special circumstances, be allotted to a polling station within the parliamentary polling place for that district unless the parliamentary polling place is outside the electoral area.

(4) Any polling district formed for the purpose of the election of councillors for any ward of a London borough shall, if the ward is wholly included in the electoral area for the election of a councillor of the Greater London Council, be a polling district for the election of a councillor of that Council for that electoral area.

(5) If the polling districts in an electoral area for the election of a councillor of the Greater London Council or in part of such an area are not determined by subsection (4) above—

(a) the council of the London borough which includes that electoral area, or

(b) in the case of an electoral area which includes the City, the Inner Temple and the Middle Temple, the City of Westminster,

may divide that area or, as the case may be, that part of that area, into polling districts, and may alter any polling district, and subsection (3) above applies to the power conferred by this subsection.

32 Voting at local government elections

(1) All persons voting as electors at a local government election shall do so in person at the polling station allotted to them by the rules under section 36 or section 42 below except in so far as this section makes exceptions for—

(a) those registered as service voters;

(b) those unable or likely to be unable to go in person to the polling station for one of the following reasons—

(i) the general nature of the occupation, service or employment of the person in question;

(ii) that person's service as a member of Her Majesty's reserve or auxiliary forces ;

(iii) the particular circumstances of that person's employment on the date of the poll either as a constable or, for a purpose connected with the election, by the returning officer;

(iv) at an ordinary election, the fact that that person is acting as returning officer at an ordinary election of councillors for some other electoral area ;

(v) at an ordinary election, the particular circumstances of that person's employment on the date of the poll by the returning officer at an ordinary election of councillors for some other electoral area for a purpose connected with the election in that area;

(c) those unable or likely to be unable, by reason either of blindness or any other physical incapacity or of religious observance, to go in person to the polling station or, if able to go, to vote unaided ;

(d) those unable or likely to be unable to go in person from their qualifying address to the polling station without making a journey by air or sea;

(e) those registered by virtue of a patient's declaration under section 7 above ;

(f) those who have a service qualification depending on marriage to, and residence outside the United Kingdom to be with, a person having a service qualification; and

(g) those unable or likely to be unable to go in person to the polling station by reason of the general nature of the occupation, service or employment of, and their resulting absence from their qualifying address to be with, their husband or wife.

(2) A person registered as a service voter may at any local government election vote by proxy.

(3) Where—

(a) a person is registered at the same qualifying address both as a parliamentary and as a local government elector, and is not so registered as a service voter, and

(b) there is in force an appointment of a proxy to vote for him at parliamentary elections in respect of that registration, being an appointment based on the general nature of his occupation, service or employment,

then, in respect of that registration, at local government elections at which postal voting is allowed he shall be treated as an absent voter and may vote by proxy.

(4) Unless treated as an absent voter under subsection (3) above, any of the persons mentioned in paragraphs (b) to (e) of subsection (1) above who is not registered as a service voter may vote by post at any local government election at which postal voting is allowed, if he applies to be treated as an absent voter and provides an address in the United Kingdom to which a ballot paper is to be sent for the purpose.

(5) A person who is not registered as a service voter but who either—

(a) has made a service declaration in respect of a qualification depending on marriage as described in subsection (1), or

(b) is as a married person unable or likely to be unable to go to the poll by reason of absence in the circumstances there described,

has the like right to vote by proxy and, in the case dealt with by paragraph (b) above, the like right to vote by post as a person unable or likely to be unable to go to the poll by reason of the general nature of his occupation, service or employment.

(6) A person, whether registered as a service voter or not—

(a) may vote in person as an elector notwithstanding any appointment of a proxy to vote for him, if he applies for a ballot paper for the purpose before a ballot paper has been issued for him to vote by proxy : but

(b) shall not be entitled to vote in person as an elector—

(i) where he may vote by proxy by virtue of an appointment for the time being in force and he does not so apply ; or

(ii) where he has applied to be treated as an absent voter and is entitled in pursuance of the application to vote by post.

(7) A person not registered as a service voter, if he is entitled to vote in person, but unable or likely to be unable to go in person to the polling station allotted to him by reason of the particular circumstances of his employment on the date of the poll either as a constable or, for a purpose connected with the election by the returning officer, may vote at any polling station of the electoral area.

(8) Postal voting shall be allowed at all local government elections, except, in England and Wales, elections of parish or community councillors.

(9) Nothing in this section shall be taken as conferring a right to vote on a person not having the right apart from this section.

33 Absent voters at local government elections

(1) An application to be treated as an absent voter at local government elections shall be made to the registration officer and shall be allowed by him if he is satisfied that the applicant is, or will if registered be, entitled under section 32 above to vote as an absent voter.

(2) The application shall be for a particular election only, if it is based on—

(a) the applicant's service as a member of any of Her Majesty's reserve or auxiliary forces ; or

(b) the fact that the applicant is acting as returning officer in some other electoral area ; or

(c) the particular circumstances of the applicant's employment on the date of the poll either as a constable or by a returning officer;

(d) religious observance ; or

(e) a patient's declaration under section 7 above.

(3) An application not based on one of the grounds mentioned in subsection (2) above shall be for an indefinite period but, where such an application is allowed, the applicant shall cease to be entitled to be so treated as an absent voter in pursuance of it if—

(a) he applies to the registration officer to be no longer so treated; or

(b) he ceases to be registered at the same qualifying address, or becomes so registered as a service voter ; or

(c) the registration officer gives notice that he has reason to believe that there has been a material change of circumstances, and the prescribed period elapses after the giving of notice.

(4) The registration officer shall keep a record of absent voters and of the addresses provided by them as the addresses to which their ballot papers are to be sent.

34 Proxies at local government elections

(1) Except in the case of a service voter who is as a peer subject to a legal incapacity to vote at parliamentary elections, no person shall be specially appointed proxy to vote at local government elections, but any appointment of a person to vote as proxy at parliamentary elections shall have effect also for the purpose of local government elections.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, in the case of a service voter who is as a peer subject to a legal incapacity to vote at parliamentary elections, any person shall be capable of being appointed proxy to vote at local government elections for him and may vote in pursuance of the appointment, but not more than one person at a time shall be appointed on behalf of any service voter.

(3) A person—

(a) is not capable of being appointed under subsection (2) above to vote, or of voting, as proxy at a local government election unless he is not subject (age apart) to any legal incapacity to vote at the election as an elector and is either a Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland ;

(b) otherwise qualified is capable of voting as proxy at a local government election at which he is of voting age on the date of the poll, and of being appointed proxy for that purpose before he is of voting age.

(4) A person voting as proxy at a local government election may do so by post if—

(a) he applies to vote as proxy by post and provides an address in the United Kingdom to which a ballot paper is to be sent for the purpose, and

(b) he is entitled to vote by post as an absent voter at the election,

but a person voting as proxy at a local government election, unless entitled to do so by post, shall do so in person at the elector's polling station.

(5) The registration officer shall keep a record of electors for whom proxies have been appointed and of the names and addresses of the persons appointed.

(6) Subsections (5) to (7) of section 21 and subsections (4), (5), (6) and (8) of section 22 above apply for the purposes of local government elections as they apply for the purposes of parliamentary elections.