Check in when you have voted in the 2024 general election

[danny la rouge]

This year our polling cards didn’t turn up. Nobody in our close got one.

 

[iona]

There is a problem with waiting until after people have voted as, in recent years, the polling staff seem to ask if you want them to dispose of your polling card rather than keep it. If you let them keep it, you might not know your polling number to give it to the tellers *.

I haven't even been sent a polling card, I only know where to vote because they published it in the local paper (couldn't find info anywhere on the council website when I checked last week)

Edit - no, that's a lie. I got an envelope yesterday containing a load of bumf about needing photo ID and on closer inspection fishing it out the recycling to write a shopping list, turns out it also contained a polling "card" which is actually just a printed sheet of A4 rather than the thicker A5ish piece of card I'd been expecting.

 

[Buddy Bradley]

Voted (Labour on the off-chance it makes a difference to getting rid of the current Tory, probably won't though). Pretty empty village hall, old lady peered at my driving license.

 

[danny la rouge]

I haven't even been sent a polling card, I only know where to vote because they published it in the local paper (couldn't find info anywhere on the council website when I checked last week)

Same with my youngest daughter. She’s in a new flat in the East End of Glasgow and didn’t get a card. She couldn’t find anything online telling her where to vote and is only guessing her polling place will be the closest primary school. Although it might not be.

 

[danny la rouge]

(There are no windmills in Dennistoun as far as I know).

 

[moochedit]

Did you vote in person in the hope there would be dog at the poling station, so you could, well you know...

It's a shame dogs can't vote

 

[iona]

Might see how much confusion I can cause by using my English bus pass as ID instead of my Scottish one

 

[farmerbarleymow]

I want to reform the system so that’s the word I ticked. That was right, aye?

I hear farage is a big fan of jazz.

 

[iona]

Same with my youngest daughter. She’s in a new flat in the East End of Glasgow and didn’t get a card. She couldn’t find anything online telling her where to vote and is only guessing her polling place will be the closest primary school. Although it might not be.

Sorry, I edited. Mine had turned up in disguise (only yesterday mind, and post here seems to arrive quicker than the mainland)

 

[Bus Honeygun]

Voted early o' clock on my way to work. No queues or anything but a couple leaving as I arrived and a couple more arriving as I was leaving. Some light-hearted chit-chat about how much I'd aged from my passport photo (would have shown him my heart surgery scar but it didn't seem like the time). Had a bit of a smirk when I saw that the Reform Ltd. candidate was from Plymouth. Might explain why he kept a profile so low that I was unaware of his existence until today.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

What are the rules about the location of polling stations because I remember about 25 years ago I had to get a bus to go and vote and I didn't live in the countryside I lived bang smack in the middle of a big city?

there's a legal requirement to review polling districts / places / stations every 5 years.

(not the same thing as council ward / constituency boundaries, and you can have multiple polling stations within one polling place - my local community centre has the main hall divided in to two separate polling stations each with their own ballot box and 2 or 3 people looking after it, there's a sign at the entrance saying 'these streets this way, those streets that way' or words to that effect.) - think the aim here is so that each polling station / box caters for a maximum number of people to keep the queues down.

lots more here but not sure how much of it is law rather than guidance.

https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/reviews-polling-districts-polling-places-and-polling-stations

not sure there's any definite rules about it, as i'd have thought a specific rule that polling places must be no more than X distance from home addresses would not be practical in rural areas especially.

maybe more of it should be law - although don't think we have got to the point like in the USA where you get rogue councils deliberately buggering about with the number / location of polling stations to try and suppress vote in areas likely to vote for 'the other lot'.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

Some light-hearted chit-chat about how much I'd aged from my passport photo

I had basically the same conversation. I always say the photo in mine is terrible when I hand it over, and the clerks immediately started talking about their own bad passport photos.

 

[Voley]

Fuck alone knows. A young lad who was proud to be voting the first time posted a selfie putting his postal vote in the letterbox and they were all like "You can walk to a polling booth! You're abusing the system!" etc.

I think it had more to do with him being 1. Young and 2. Voting Labour that enraged them.

You might've thought they'd be pleased that someone was engaging with the democratic process in their preferred manner. But no.

I dId enjoy seeing someone posting one of those "Readers added context" things though, explaining why postal votes aren't an abuse of the system. and marty has been having fun with them.

Just as a postscript to this, I've been reading this morning that Farage did a postal vote so maybe they can direct their ire at him from now on.

 

[Karl Masks]

Just as a postscript to this, I've been reading this morning that Farage did a postal vote so maybe they can direct their ire at him from now on.

I hope his vote gets lost, that would be precious. Stolen by seagulls and dumped into the channel where it congeals with a bunch of other gammon postal votes forming a liferaft that allows a refugee to cling to for safe travel to the UK.

 

[imposs1904]

I didn’t vote but the psephological geek in me is looking forward to the 2024 equivalent of some Portillo moments tonight, and wondering if Starmer will display a hitherto hidden sense of humour by doing that St Francis of Assisi speech on the doorstep of 10 Downing Street tomorrow morning.

 

[moochedit]

I want to reform the system so that’s the word I ticked. That was right, aye?

I thought it was LABOUR to support the workers did i do it wrong?

 

[rasputin]

I happened on this in today's Guardian:



Does that mean this forum is breaking the law if commenters post which party they voted for?

 

[danny la rouge]

I thought it was LABOUR to support the workers did i do it wrong?

Almost certainly.

 

[imposs1904]

I have voted, like a bad anarchist. I’ll be getting PMs revoking support.

The Ian Bone Wing of the Anarchist Movement.

 

[danny la rouge]

I happened on this in today's Guardian:

View attachment 431868

Does that mean this forum is breaking the law if commenters post which party they voted for?

Yes. That’s why the editor has to go to jail once every four years.

 

[moochedit]

I happened on this in today's Guardian:

View attachment 431868

Does that mean this forum is breaking the law if commenters post which party they voted for?

Yes we are all going to prison

 

[Ranbay]

I hear farage is a big fan of jazz.

He definalty reads Jazz mags

 

[Buddy Bradley]

Does that mean this forum is breaking the law if commenters post which party they voted for?

I would imagine that newspapers are held to a different standard than anonymous internet forums.

 

[rasputin]

Yes. That’s why the editor has to go to jail once every four years.

I hope you're joking. Because the legislation does say the penalty can be imprisonment of up to 6 months.

 

[moochedit]

I hope you're joking. Because the legislation does say the penalty can be imprisonment of up to 6 months.

I think they would take account of the numbers likely to view it.

 

[AnnaKarpik]

I've never seen a teller, nor had anyone knock the door. These goings on are for city folk I reckon.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

I hope you're joking. Because the legislation does say the penalty can be imprisonment of up to 6 months.

The BBC suggest you can post on SM how you voted

Selfies, dogs and drinking: What can't you do in a polling station?

The rules on everything from dogs, children, ID and selfies, to voting while drunk.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[danny la rouge]

I hope you're joking. Because the legislation does say the penalty can be imprisonment of up to 6 months.

I’m joking.

How to vote: What are the dos and don'ts of election day?

The rules on everything from whether you can take your own pen to voting while drunk.

www.bbc.co.uk

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I've never seen a teller, nor had anyone knock the door. These goings on are for city folk I reckon.

think i have had it once or twice, where someone's come round early evening to tell me to get off my arse and go and vote (or something like that only a bit politer)

would have thought it would only work if they are checking all day though.

 

[danny la rouge]

think i have had it once or twice, where someone's come round early evening to tell me to get off my arse and go and vote (or something like that only a bit politer)

would have thought it would only work if they are checking all day though.

They usually only do that if you’ve told a canvasser you’re going to vote for that party. Potentially getting out another party’s support would be counterproductive.

(Unless they’re profiling your street and are convinced it’s a street of their supporters. But that’s a high risk strategy).