How to vote on election day

How to vote

• go to your local polling station
• you can only vote at the polling station listed on your polling card. If you go to another station you will not be able to vote there
• if you can’t get to your polling station you can vote via a postal vote or proxy vote
• tell the polling staff your name and address so they can check that you are on the electoral register. You can show them your poll card, but you don’t need it to vote
• You will need to present an accepted form of physical photo ID to prove your identity, If you wish to vote in person at your polling station. Information on Voter ID requirements
• the staff will give you a ballot paper listing the parties or candidates you can vote for. It will have an official mark
• take your ballot paper into a polling booth so that no one can see how you vote
• read the ballot paper carefully, it will tell you how to cast your vote
• don’t write anything else on the paper or your vote may not be counted
• when you have marked your vote, fold the ballot paper in half and put it in the ballot box. Do not let anyone see your vote
• if you are still not sure what to do, ask the polling staff to help you

When to vote

• polling stations are open from 7am to 10pm on polling day
• you must be inside the actual polling station, or holding a ticket indicating you are in the queue for polling, by 10pm in order to still get a ballot paper
• if there's a queue at this time, you'll still be able to vote if you were in the polling station before the deadline

Finding your polling station

Find your polling station 

Your polling card has the address and location of your polling station on it. Please check where your station is, as it may have changed since the last time you voted.

You can only vote at the polling station that you have been allocated to. You can’t vote at any other station.

You don't need your polling card

You just have to confirm your name and address to the polling station staff.

What to do if you make a mistake on your ballot paper

• if you make a mistake when marking your ballot paper, don’t put it in the ballot box, ask the presiding officer for a another one
• your spoilt paper will be taken from you, and will be placed in a secure envelope

Access to polling stations for people with disabilities

• any voter who is unable to vote without assistance or who is unable to read may be assisted either by a companion or by the presiding officer at the polling station
• all polling stations are wheelchair accessible
• polling staff are trained to help disabled and other voters to vote
• equipment (such as ramps, visual enhancement aids, low level polling booths and Braille information) is available at all stations
• voters with disabilities can also vote using a postal vote or a proxy vote – but will need to complete an application to do so

Election results

• results will be tweeted on Twitter (follow us at @wfcouncil) as soon as they are confirmed, and will be published on our website as soon as we have them on polling day
• results will also be displayed at Waltham Forest Town Hall and at Library Plus branches

Why do polling staff write your electoral number down before allowing me to vote?

The law requires every ballot paper to have a unique serial number, and that a record is kept of the serial number of every ballot paper issued to every voter. This is to prevent electoral fraud, and is not used to identify how anyone has voted.