UPDATE: |People who want to vote in May 1 local elections urged to act now ahead of register to vote deadline News

Certain people who have previously registered to vote may need to register again – here’s everything you need to know before the deadline

People who want to vote in the May local elections have been urged to act now ahead of the register to vote deadline.

Local and mayoral elections will take place across England on May 1 – but anyone not yet registered to vote must submit an application by 11.59pm on Friday, April 11.

When people in England take to the polls next month it will be the first big test at the ballot box for political parties since Labour won the general election in July 2024.

Voting will cover local government elections, parish council elections, local authority mayoral elections, combined authority mayoral elections and combined county authority mayoral elections.

There will be 1,641 council seats up for grabs across 23 local authorities, as well as four regional mayors and two local mayors, while voters in the constituency of Runcorn & Helsby will choose a new MP.

So far, there has been an average of 16,888 applications to register to vote made per day in the week to April 9. This is an increase from the 15,261 registrations the previous week and the 13,131 a fortnight ago, Government figures show.

The highest number of applications in a single day so far this year was on April 7 when 20,303 were submitted.

Now people are being reminded that if your details have changed or you’ve moved home since the general election last year, you’ll need to register again.

Niki Nixon, director of communications at the Electoral Commission, said on Thursday: “Tomorrow is the last day to register to vote ahead of the upcoming local elections on May 1.

“You need to be registered before the deadline at midnight on Friday so you can have your say.

“If your details have changed or you’ve moved home since the general election last year, you’ll need to register again.

“It only takes five minutes, and you can do it online at gov.uk/register-to-vote.

“And if you want to vote by post or by appointing a proxy to vote on your behalf, you’ll need to apply before the deadlines next week – but you must be registered to vote first.”

Of the 23 local authorities holding elections, 14 are county councils: Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Devon, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Kent, Lancashire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire.

The others are the unitary authorities of Buckinghamshire, Cornwall, Durham, North Northamptonshire, Northumberland, Shropshire, West Northamptonshire and Wiltshire, plus Doncaster Metropolitan Council.

Every seat on all of the combined 23 authorities is up for grabs, but boundary changes mean some areas will be electing fewer councillors than before.

All voters intending to cast a ballot in the elections on May 1 will not only need to be registered but also show a form of photo identification at the polling station – but not all types of photo ID will be accepted.

Passports, driving licences and blue badges are valid as forms of ID to take with you on the day you go to vote.

Anyone without the correct identification will need to apply for a voter authority certificate by 5pm on April 23, which can be done online at gov.uk/apply-for-photo-id-voter-authority-certificate.

On election day polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm and most results are expected to be announced in the afternoon on May 2.

How and where to register to vote in local elections

To register to vote, or check if you are eligible to vote, you should visit gov.uk/registertovote.

You normally only need to register once – you do not need to re-register for every election. But you’ll need to register again if you’ve changed your name, address or nationality.

The process can be done online and usually takes only takes about 5 minutes to complete. You can also register to vote using a paper form, which you need to print and send to your electoral registration office.

When registering, you’ll be asked for your National Insurance number (but you can still register if you do not have one).

After you have registered your name and address will appear on the electoral register, meaning you can then vote in person or apply for postal/proxy vote.