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Elections

Voter Registration Information Email

Canvass emails have been sent out to some electors from mail@elections.huntingdonshire.gov.uk entitled 'IMPORTANT - Please confirm your voter registration information now', inviting electors to check who is eligible to register to vote at their address.

The website link is genuine and secure, and linked to our annual canvass of all properties in the District.

Elections

Postal Vote Changes

Expiry of postal votes and reapplication process

Following a change to the law, postal votes can no longer apply indefinitely. They now expire after a maximum period of three years.

Postal voters can still register to vote by post for a particular poll, but they can no longer hold a postal vote for longer than three years.

Existing postal voters are being contacted by the Elections Team whose postal votes are due to expire at the end of January 2026. Electors will be contacted via email, post or text message (or via a combination of means) to ensure they have sufficient time to make a new application.

Affected electors who do not reapply for a postal vote by 31 January 2026 will have their postal vote cancelled. Electors will still be eligible to vote at their local polling station and can reapply for a postal vote again at any time after this date.

What you need to do to reapply

You can reapply online or contact us to request a paper form.

If you no longer wish to vote by post, please contact us and we can cancel your postal vote. This will stop any reminder letters being sent to you.

Limits on handing in postal votes at polling stations

We encourage postal voters to return their postal vote via the Royal Mail system in plenty of time.

There will be a limit on the number of postal votes a person can hand in at a polling station - they will not be allowed to hand in more than five postal ballot packs for other electors plus their own.

If a person hands in more than five postal ballot packs for other electors, all the postal votes (other than their own) will be rejected.

If there is reason to suspect a person has already handed in the maximum number of postal votes on any previous occasion at the election, any subsequent postal votes handed in will be rejected.

Completion of postal vote return form

Anyone handing in postal votes will need to complete a postal vote return form. The person handing in the postal vote(s) will need to complete the form with their name, address and the reason for handing in other people's postal votes. They will also need to complete a declaration that they are not handing in more than the permitted number and that they are not a political campaigner.

If the form is not completed with all the required information, the postal vote(s) will be rejected. Rejected postal votes will not be included in the count. After the election, the Electoral Registration Officer will write to electors who have had their postal votes rejected, and explain why they have been rejected.

Ban on political campaigners handling postal votes

Political campaigners will be banned from handling postal votes, except where the postal vote is their own, that of a close family member, or someone they provide regular care for.

They are not banned from handling postal votes if they do so in the course of their usual duties (for example, if they work for Royal Mail).

A political campaigner is defined in legislation as:

  1. a candidate at the election

  2. an election agent of a candidate at the election

  3. a sub-agent of an election agent at the election

  4. employed or engaged for the purposes of that person’s activities as a candidate

  5. a member of a registered political party and carries on an activity designed to promote a particular outcome at the election

  6. employed or engaged by a registered political party in connection with the party's political activities

  7. employed or engaged by a person within paragraphs (a) to (f) to carry on an activity designed to promote a particular outcome at the election

  8. employed or engaged by a person within paragraph (g) to carry on an activity designed to promote a particular outcome at the election.

If found guilty of handling postal votes as a campaigner, a person could face a fine and/or imprisonment up to two years.

Secrecy requirements extended to postal and proxy votes

The secrecy requirements which apply at a polling station are being extended to postal and proxy votes.

It will be an offence to try to find out how someone has voted when completing their postal vote, or to communicate how a postal or proxy voter has voted.

Anyone found guilty of breaching the secrecy requirements could face a fine or imprisonment up to six months.

View more information on the How to Vote - Postal Voting page.