Three weeks left to register for May elections

20 February 2006

MPs remind voters of 13 March registration deadline

Voters in Southend-on-Sea and Rochford have until 13 March – just three weeks – to register so that they can vote for their local council representatives at elections on 4 May 2006. 

With the registration deadline looming, the Rochford and Southend East MP James Duddridge and Southend West MP David Amess  today helped the Electoral Commission launch a campaign urging all those people who are eligible to vote to make sure they are on the electoral register (see photographs)

Names can be added later to the electoral register on a monthly basis but anyone not registered to vote by 13 March will not be able to vote in the 4 May local elections. An online electoral registration form can be downloaded from www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

Peter Wardle, Chief Executive of the Electoral Commission, said, “Many people assume that they’ll be automatically registered, but that isn’t the case. So if you haven’t already received and returned a registration form from your local council, download one at www.aboutmyvote.co.uk

Politics affects every aspect of our lives, from rubbish collection and road safety to education and care for the elderly. We want to remind people in Southend-on-Sea and Rochford that they must be registered by 13 March so they don’t lose their right to vote.”

A recent report by the Electoral Commission found that up to 3.7 million people in England and Wales, between 8-9% of the eligible population, did not register to vote in 2000.

You can find out more about elections in your area by going to www.aboutmyvote.co.uk or by contacting your local council to check whether you are registered.