Voting by proxy
Voting by proxy means you appoint someone you trust to vote on your behalf.
It’s useful if you can’t get to the polling station on election day. If circumstances change, you can still vote in the polling station, if your proxy is not voting by post.
If you have just had a medical emergency arise that means you cannot go to the polling station in person, you can apply to vote by emergency proxy.
You can apply for a proxy vote on the GOV.UK website.
Changes to postal and proxy voting
Absent voting allows you to vote in an election if you are unable to vote in person at the polling station on the day. For example, you might be on holiday or at work, or you might have a medical condition or disability which makes it difficult to attend the polling station.
There are two types of absent voting:
- postal voting – once a completed application has been submitted, a postal pack, which will include your ballot paper, will be sent to you by post (you'll be asked to complete your postal pack and return it in time to be included in the counting of votes)
- proxy voting – you can appoint someone you trust to vote on your behalf (once appointed, they will vote at the polling station where you would normally vote)
Changes you’ll see
You will have the option to apply for a postal vote via a new central government online system.
You will need to provide your National Insurance number when applying for an absent vote, whether this is an online application or paper application.
Postal voting
Postal voters must reapply to vote by post every 3 years.
Political parties and campaigners will be banned from handling postal vote packs.
There will be a limit on the number of postal vote packs that a person can hand in at a polling station.
Proxy votes
You will only be able to act as a proxy for up to 2 people living in the UK (or a maximum of 4 people, with 2 people living in the UK and 2 people registered as living overseas).