Thousands of people in Nottingham are thought to be at risk of missing out on their chance to vote in next month’s General Election as tonight’s deadline arrives.
The deadline to register to vote is 11:59pm tonight, and Nottingham City Council is urging people to register in order to have their say on June 8.
Currently, 191,109 people in the city are registered to vote – which is believed to be considerably less than the actual number of people who are eligible – research shows the city’s working age population (16-64) alone stands at more than 300,000.
The City Council says while it cannot be sure how many people have applied to vote since Theresa May called the snap election, there has definitely been a spike in the number of applications in the past month.
Rebecca Brookes of the Electoral Services team at the Council said: “We are having to download 4,000 applications a day.
“Some of these are duplicates from the same people, but we are definitely seeing a massive peak in voter registration.”
Paula Sharratt went out campaigning in Nottingham on Saturday (20 May) to make more people aware of the approaching deadline.
She first got involved with the Electoral Reform Society when she realised how many people were dropping off the electoral register.
The 59-year-old, of West Bridgford, said: “I got sent posters by the Electoral Reform Society, and went out in the morning to sit by the Brian Clough statue and wait to see what happened.
“People were so busy that nobody really connected with the posters, so I went into Old Market Square and asked whether people were registered to vote.
“It is all about how you connect with people.”
Ms Sharratt has been canvassing for politics since she was eight years old, and has canvassed for a number of parties in her attempt to get people more involved in politics.
She added: “It is really important to vote. We need to give the Government a proper mandate.
“It is all about people thinking that they can make a difference.”
How to register
All you need to be able to register to vote is five minutes of free time and your National Insurance number.
The quickest, and easiest, way to do this is online.
Anyone who is aged 18 or over, and is a British, Irish or qualifying Commonwealth citizen can register to vote.
If you are already registered to vote, but will not be able to do so in person on June 8 you can apply for a postal vote, or to vote by proxy.
The deadline for applying for a postal vote is 5pm on Tuesday May 23, with the deadline to apply for a proxy vote – where you can appoint another person to vote on your behalf – is 5pm on Wednesday 31 May.
If you have any questions about registering, you can call Nottingham City Council’s Electoral Service team on 0115 876 4111.
For more information on registering to vote or voting in the general election, visit the council’s website.
