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Electoral Registration

Registration Process

The Electoral Services department produces and maintains a register of people living in the District area who are entitled to vote in all local and parliamentary elections.

You can only vote in elections if your name is on this register, known as the Register of Electors. The register is updated every year using the details from the annual canvass form sent to all households in the autumn.

However, we can now add names to the register of electors from the beginning of January to the beginning of September, using a process called Rolling Registration. You can apply here:

Rolling Registration application form

In order for your registration details to be updated during these months, you must complete and return an individual registration form by each month's deadline.

Rolling Registration Dates for 2011/2012

As applications for anonymous registration are not subject to the 5-day objection period, they may be received and determined later than normal applications for inclusion in the same alteration notice; the relevant dates are shown in Column 3 of the above table.

A link to the Electoral Commission website regarding rolling registration is here;

http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk/

Remember: to vote in local or national elections your name must be on the register of electors.

The Register of Electors

The Electoral Registration Officer keeps two versions of the register. The Full Register and the Edited Register, both Registers list names and addresses of the electors within the North Hertfordshire District area

The Full Register of Electors is a public document and you may inspect it as a paper copy under supervision at the Council offices Gernon Road, Letchworth Garden City. You will only be able to make hand-written notes of its contents which, by law, you will not be allowed to use for any direct marketing purposes. You can make an appointment to view the register by calling 01462 474503 or email elections@north-herts.gov.uk in advance.

By law, there are strict restrictions on who we can supply the full register to, and, in turn, there are strict restrictions on the uses that they can make of it. The full register is available for electoral purposes (so to candidates and registered political parties) and to a range of government agencies and organisations involved in law and order and the prevention of fraud (including credit reference agencies).

The Edited Register of Electors version of the register is available to anyone and can be used for any purpose. It omits the names of those electors who have asked us to leave them out. To prevent your name appearing in the edited register, you should place a tick in the 'Edited Register' column when completing your registration form.

The full version is available for electoral purposes (so to candidates and registered political parties) and to a range of government agencies and organisations involved in law and order and the prevention of fraud. It can be inspected, but only under supervision, and the person inspecting it can only take hand-written notes.