Postal Voting
To vote in an election held within the administrative boundaries of North Ayrshire you must be registered and otherwise qualified.
When you register to vote, you may elect to vote by post (i.e. as an absent voter) instead of turning up to vote in a polling station. You can choose to vote by post at a particular election or at all elections. You may also appoint a proxy to vote by post on your behalf.
It is important to note that new rules aimed at minimising fraud, require applicants for a postal vote to provide the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) with their date of birth and a signature. These identifiers are held on file by the ERO. During an election, each postal voter, when posting the ballot paper back, is also asked to complete a Postal Voter Statement which is returned with the ballot paper. The signature and date of birth on this Statement must match the records held by the ERO. If they do not the vote may not be counted.
Some people may for whatever reason be unable to sign their Statement e.g. through infirmity. In such cases they can apply to the ERO for a signature waiver or appoint a postal proxy.
For more information about postal voting, including the new rules on absent voter identifiers, please contact the Electoral Registration Officer.