Refresh your vote
Absent Vote Electors Need to Refresh Their Signatures
From 23 January those electors who vote by post and whose application is approximately 5 years old will receive a Signature Refresh letter from South Norfolk
Further information
An important part of postal voting security measures are to provide a fresh updated signature every 5 years, since people's signatures and circumstances can change over time. Legislation requires the Electoral Registration Officer to carry out the first annual refresh of signatures by 31 January 2012.
When electors are sent a postal vote for an election they are required to provide their signature and date of birth on a postal voting statement. These 'personal identifiers' are checked against those that were provided on the elector's original postal vote application form, to ensure that they match. This is to prevent someone else from using their vote. If they do not match, the vote cannot be counted. Personal identifiers are always kept separate from ballot papers, so no-one knows how they have voted.
People should look out for the form from 23 January 2012. Electors should sign and return it as soon as possible. The Council legally has to send a reminder 3 weeks later to everyone who does not respond, and this incurs additional costs.
If an elector has a disability which means that they either cannot provide a signature or sign in a consistent and distinctive way, they should indicate this on the form and make sure the name and address of their helper is provided.
If someone no longer wants to vote by post they must respond by ticking the relevant box on the form and return it to us as soon as possible in order to avoid any unnecessary reminders.
If the signature refresh form is not returned by the deadline the existing absent vote facility will be cancelled and individuals will have to vote in person at a polling station or make a new application.
This Absent Vote signature refresh exercise will be undertaken every January.
If you have any questions about the Absent Vote Signature Refresh Form please get in touch with South Norfolk Council's Elections office on 01508 533692.
Related pages on this website
Contact us
| contact officer/team: | Democratic Services |
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| web: | online enquiry form |
| telephone: | 01508 533622 |
| minicom/textphone: | 01508 533622 |
| address: | South Norfolk Council South Norfolk House Swan Lane Long Stratton Norwich NR15 2XE |
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If you need information in large print, audio cassette, braille, translation (written or verbal) or signed interpretation, let us know when you contact us.
Last updated on: 25 January 2012