The Government has changed our voting system in a manner which in practice makes it more difficult for certain groups, for instance young voters to vote.
Check below to see if this affects you, and to take action to ensure you can vote. You must take action before 25 April to vote in Liverpool’s council elections on 4 May.
In essence you can only vote in person if you have certain types of personal identification. The commonest photo ID cards are listed below:
- a UK or Northern Ireland photocard driving licence (full or provisional)
- a driving licence issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Isle of Man or any of the Channel Islands
- a UK passport
- a passport issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or a Commonwealth country
- a PASS card (National Proof of Age Standards Scheme)
- a Blue Badge
- a biometric residence permit (BRP)
- a Defence Identity Card (MOD form 90)
- a national identity card issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein
You can also use one of the following travel passes as photo ID when you vote:
- an older person’s bus pass but only if it is a national travel pass with a red rose in the top lefthand corner and the statement at the bottom: ‘Concessionary travel funded by HM Government with your local authority. These are issued to people who have reached full pensionable age. The yellow Mersey Travel pass available free to over 60’s is not acceptable even though it carries a photograph.
- a disabled person’s bus pass
- a Freedom Pass
NOTE THAT YOUNG PERSONS’ TRAVEL PASSES, MERSEYTRAVEL PASS FOR OVER 60’S, STUDENT ID, ETC ARE NOT VALID ID DOCUMENTS.
If you do not have one of these you must either apply for a Postal vote or request a Voter Authority Certificate, see below the process to do it.
1. Apply for a postal vote.
You must complete a postal vote application form which must be returned to Electoral Services at Liverpool City Council who will also help if you have problems accessing the form. You can contact them on 0151 233 3028 or elections@liverpool.gov.uk
- Either send your completed form via post to:
Electoral Services
Liverpool City Council
Cunard Building
Water Street
Liverpool
L3 1AH
http://www.liverpool.gov.uk
- Or emailed a scanned copy completed form to elections@liverpool.gov.uk
The deadline to apply for a postal vote for the elections on 4 May 2023 is 5pm on Tuesday 18 April.
If you are not registered to vote you must register to vote by 11:59pm on Monday 17 April.
2. Apply for a Voter Authority Certificate.
You only need to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate if:
- you do not have acceptable photo ID
- you no longer look like the photo on your ID
- the name on your photo ID is different to your name on the electoral register
Details of how to apply for a Voter Authority Certificate are available here.
You will need your name as on the electoral register, address, date of birth and national insurance number.
If you have any other queries get in touch with the Electoral Services Team at Liverpool City Council.
