Make sure you are election ready!

With only a week to go until the voter registration deadline for the Police and Crime Commissioner Election, anyone wanting to vote on 2 May must make sure they are election ready.
The deadline to register to vote is midnight on 16 April. If you are not already registered to vote at your current address, apply online now at gov.uk/register-to-vote, it takes just five minutes.

Voters have a range of options – they 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 17 April. The deadline to apply for a proxy vote is a week later, 5pm on 24 April.

Everyone voting at a polling station will need to show photo ID – 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
gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate. You must apply by 5pm on 24 April, to be able to use the Voter Authority Certificate on 2 May.

Mark Stone, Electoral Registration Officer for South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse, said: “Don’t lose your chance to have your say on 2 May, when you be able vote for the Police and Crime Commissioner for Thames Valley, the elected representative who will oversee how crime is tackled for the next four years in our area. If you’re not sure whether you are registered to vote, or have questions about how to apply for a postal or proxy vote, or free ID, please get in touch with our elections team as soon as possible.”

Craig Westwood, Director of Communications at the Electoral Commission, said: “It is important that people check they’re election ready ahead of upcoming deadlines. All voters must be registered, and some may need to apply for a postal or proxy vote or free ID.
“Voters will need to show photo ID at polling stations this May. Anyone who does not have one of the accepted forms of photo ID can apply for free ID online or by completing a paper form and submitting it to their local council.”

Information about the new requirement and all your voting options can be found on the
Electoral Commission’s website.