Make sure you’re ready to vote in 2024 General Election

Make sure you are ready to vote in the 2024 General Election.

You must register to vote before the deadline at midnight on June 18 – and people are reminded to check which constituency they are in.

Following a shake-up by the Boundary Commission, constituency borders have changed – and you may have moved without realising it.

Cockermouth, parts of Maryport and Aspatria are now in the Penrith & Solway constituency, for example, and there have been major changes across the county.

Why should I vote?

Amid all the debate and drama of the general election build up, you wouldn’t be the first to think ‘why should I even bother voting?’

The number of people voting in elections has declined rapidly since 1997 and factors ranging from age to health and political disengagement have been blamed for the drop.Many people choose not to vote because they don’t like any of the parties up for election or they have little to no confidence that they have a say in what the Government does.

Other people may face more practical struggles like life events getting in the way, being in a difficult living situation or being unable to physically get to a polling station.

But there are ways to make your voice heard even if you think you can’t – or don’t want to – vote. Find out more here

How do I apply to vote?

Voters can apply online at gov.uk/register-to-vote. It takes just five minutes.

You can vote in person, by post or by appointing someone they trust to vote in their place, known as a proxy vote.

The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on June 19. The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is a week later, 5pm on June 26.

Photo ID

For the first time at a UK General Election, voters will need to show photo ID at a polling station.

Suitable ID includes:

Provisional or full driver’s licence
Passport,
PASS card
Blue badge
Elderly person’s bus pass
Disabled person’s bus pass
Anonymous elector’s document

To find out which ID you can use in the polling station, visit the Electoral Commission website.

If you do not have one of the accepted types of ID, you can apply for free ID at www.gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate or by completing and submitting a paper form to your local authority.

You must apply by 5pm on June 26 to be able to use the Voter Authority Certificate on July 4.

Who is in charge of the General Election?

Cumberland Council is managing the elections for three constituencies – Carlisle, Penrith & Solway, and Whitehaven & Workington.

Westmorland and Furness Council is managing the elections for two constituencies – Barrow & Furness and Westmorland & Lonsdale.

So what is my constituency?

There are parts of the Westmorland and Furness Council area which comes under the Penrith & Solway constituency.

There are also some parts of the Cumberland Council area which come under the Barrow & Furness constituency.

We have produced maps showing the changes to the boundaries for each constituency:

If voters live within the Cumberland Council area, but their home is within the Barrow & Furness constituency then they should contact Cumberland Council for any queries about the election including voter registration, postal and proxy voting and voter ID.

If voters live in the Westmorland and Furness Council area, but their house falls within the Penrith & Solway constituency, then they should contact Westmorland and Furness Council with any enquiries about registering to vote, postal and proxy votes and voter ID.

Contact details for Cumberland Council’s election team are available at www.cumberland.gov.uk/voting-and-elections/general-election-2024
Westmorland & Furness Council’s election team is available on 0300 373 3300