15 October 2009,
09/237
Get ready to take part in your first general
election!
Have you turned 18 since May 2005 or are you celebrating your
18th birthday in the next few months? If so, the forthcoming
General Election could be your first chance to have your say on who
represents you at Westminster.
But to cast your vote, you will need to be on the Electoral
Register. A General Election can be called at any time between now
and June 2010, so now is the time to act.
West Lancashire Borough Council has already sent out
registration forms and people have until the 26 November 2009 to
fill them in and return them. For those who need extra support
filling the forms in, our canvassers will be calling at households
who have not yet registered until 22 October, to offer help and
advice with completing the form to be on the electoral
register.
Bill Taylor, West Lancs Returning Officer, said: “Research from
the independent Electoral Commission has shown that 22% of students
in the UK are not registered to vote in elections. Make sure you
are not included in that statistic and take the opportunity to
vote. All you have to do is fill in the form and send it back to
us, and that’s it, you can vote!”
If you are a student and live away from home during term time,
you can register at your term time address as well and vote there
instead should the election be scheduled while you are away from
home. Remember that you can only vote once though!
Householders can choose one of four ways to reply to us once
they have filled in the form: click to go online through the
website; call to use the freephone service; text to register a no
change, or post the form back in the usual way.
Click or call: if all the details on the form
are correct, and you are sure there won’t be any changes before
15th October, you can register online or by telephone. The website
address and telephone number will be given on the form.
When you go online, or use the freephone service, you will be
asked to key in the security code printed on the top of your form.
Then you will be told whether the persons in your household are
currently included in the edited register and you will be asked if
you want to make any changes regarding those that are excluded. You
can also request an application form for a postal vote.
SMS text service: if you would like to register
a “no change”, meaning all the details on the form are correct, you
can text your specific DDI and security code that are printed on
the form to 80212. You will receive a return message confirming
your successful registration.
Post: You must return the form by post if the
details on the form are incorrect, or if you wish to include or
delete someone. You must amend the form, complete it accordingly
and sign and return it in the prepaid envelope.
To find out more you can phone the Electoral Services
Office: 01695 585018 or email elections.office@westlancs.gov.uk.
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