Electoral Registration
To vote in a national or local government election you need to be on the electoral register. You are not automatically registered, even if you pay council tax. It can affect your credit rating if you are not registered to vote.
Who can register?
You can register if you are 16 or over (but you cannot vote until you are 18).
A British, Irish Republic or Commonwealth citizen, a citizen of a European Union country living in the UK or a citizen of the Channel Islands or Isle of Man living in the UK. See Who Can Vote for further details.
You need to register at the address you are living at unless you are overseas, in the armed forces or a crown servant. If you are a British citizen resident overseas or in the Armed Services or are a Crown Servant serving overseas, please see Other Categories of Elector.
Certain people can now apply to be entered on the electoral register anonymously.
How to apply
A registration form can be downloaded from the right hand downloads menu on this page. This allows you to register for the next monthly update to the published register. You can register either as an individual or as a family - please choose the appropriate form.
The Edited Register – what is it?
When completing the form you can also have some choice over who can buy details of your name and address.
There are two versions of the electoral register, the full register and the edited register.
The full register is used for elections, preventing and detecting crime and checking applications for credit. It lists the names of everyone who is entitled to vote in the Lancaster District area.
The edited register is available for general sale and can be used for any purpose including commercial activities such as marketing.
Your details will appear on the full register but you can choose not have your name showing on the edited register.
How to vote (at the polling station, by post or by proxy)
The Electoral Services office also deals with postal and proxy applications. To find out more ind out more see Different ways to Vote.