Some voters in England will be able to cast their ballots in shopping centres and at weekends for the upcoming May local elections, the government has announced.
In a trial designed to make voting easier and more convenient, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has said that voters in four areas will be able to vote in busy locations and before polling day.
The changes would mark a major departure from standard procedures if fully rolled out. Under current rules, voters in most cases are designated a single polling station between 7am and 10pm, which they can visit on polling day only.
On 7 May, people in Cambridge, Tunbridge Wells and North Hertfordshire will instead be able to cast their vote at a ‘voting hub’ in person several days ahead of the election, including on the weekend.
Meanwhile, Milton Keynes will be the only location where voters can cast their ballots at one of these hubs on the election day.
Minister for Democracy Samantha Dixon said: “The way we vote in person has not adapted to people’s busy lives, with voters often given no choice but to cast their ballot at strictly set polling stations within limited hours.
“Our trials will make polling days more convenient and test out the first real changes for over 100 years, bringing our democracy into the 21st century.“
Last month, ministers confirmed that voters in England will be able to cast their ballot at supermarkets and train stations at the upcoming local elections in another example of the government’s attempts to make voting more accessible.
The move mirrors models used in Scandinavian countries Sweden and Norway, where citizens are able to vote in advance at multiple locations that have in the past included supermarkets, libraries, and even IKEA.
A similar scheme was piloted in the UK between 2000 and 2007 but had little effect on voter turnout, an Electoral Commission report from the time found. Its evaluation found that while the scheme enhanced “the accessibility and convenience of the electoral process ... actual take-up of advance voting [remained] low”.
Shopping centre centre:mk has been designated as Milton Keynes’ central voting hub on election day. Early voting centres in Cambridge have been named as Guildhall, the Clay Farm Centre and the Meadows Community Centre, with locations in Tunbridge Wells and North Hertfordshire to be confirmed.
Peter Stanyon, chief executive of the Association of Electoral Administrators, said: “These pilots are a great start to exploring different ways to offer electors greater choice about when and where they cast their vote.
“Weekend and early voting, plus voting hubs at places like shopping centres, are used to good effect in many democracies and we hope will also be successful here. Well done to the election teams who have stepped up to take these pilots forward, we look forward to learning from you.”
After the May elections, MHCLG says the pilots will be fully evaluated, with evidence published later in the year. If considered successful, the changes could be rolled out across the country for future elections.
The trial was first announced alongside the introduction of the government’s Representation of the People Bill, which is currently in the early stages of Parliament.
Amongst its sweeping measures is legislation to extend voting rights in all UK elections to 16- and 17-year-olds. The government says it is aiming to introduce the change before the next general election, set to take place in 2029 at the latest.
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