Elections and Registering to Vote
Annual Voter Registration. This facility has now closed.
Click here for infomation on:
Registering for elections in East Devon
Last date for receipt of applications
Absent Voting by Post or Proxy
Crown Servants or British Council Employees
Registering for elections in East Devon
Your name must be on the register of electors in order for you to vote.
Between September and November each year, a canvass is undertaken and registration forms are sent to every household. By law, these must be returned with details of everyone living at the property who is eligible to register and who will be resident at that property on 15 October.
Electoral registration officers also ask for 16 and 17 year olds to be included on the form as it is possible that they will become 18 years old during the life of the next register. If that is the case, their names will appear on the register showing the date on which they will become 18. If an election is called on or after that date, that person will be eligible to vote.
The register can also be updated with new details at any time from November to August by downloading a registration form , filling it in and sending it back to the address at the bottom of the form. 
Please click here to download the registration form. (79KB - PDF Help) Alternatively, you can send us an enquiry through the Online Enquiry Form. We will accept completed forms returned to us as an email attachment or by fax, you do not need to follow up with the original. Details are on the form. There is a timetable that we have to adhere to below so you can see on which date you would be included on the Electoral Roll. If you have any questions please ring our Helpline on (01395) 517402
Electorate
In December 2008, there were 105,655 people in East Devon registered to vote. In December 2009, 105,272 people were registered to vote.
Copies of the register are available for public inspection at the Council Offices, Knowle, Sidmouth and The Town Hall, Exmouth.
The registration form and other application forms are available in large print, braille, audio tape and languages other than English. Please contact the Helpline on (01395) 517402. Forms can also be accepted scanned or digitally signed by e-mails and faxes.
Last date for receipt of applications
| Last date for receipt of applications | Date applications will be published |
| Friday 11th December 2009 | Monday 4th January 2010 |
| Friday 8th January 2010 | Monday 1st February 2010 |
| Friday 5th February 2010 | Monday 1st March 2010 |
| Wednesday 10th March 2010 | Thursday 1st April 2010 |
| Tuesday 20th April 2010 | Wednesday 28th April 2010 (if elections) |
| Monday 10th May 2010 | Tuesday 1st June 2010 |
| Wednesday 9th June 2010 | Thursday 1st July 2010 |
| Friday 9th July 2010 | Monday 2nd August 2010 |
The Electoral Services Officer keeps two versions of the electoral register. The full register lists everyone who is entitled to vote. It can only be used for electoral purposes, the prevention and detection of crime and checking your identity for credit purposes.
The edited register leaves out the names and addresses of people who have asked for them to be excluded from that version of the register. The edited register can be bought by anyone and they may use it for any purpose.
Please do not assume that you are registered to vote just because you pay Council Tax at your new property. Please telephone 01395 517402 or e-mail electoralservices@eastdevon.gov.uk for assistance.
Absent Voting by Post or Proxy
Voting by post
You can now have a permanent postal vote; a postal vote for a specific period; or a postal vote for a particular election. This will allow you to vote from home. You can make an application to vote by post up to 11 working days before an election. The form must be in our possession at least 11 working days before election day.
To apply for a Postal Vote please telephone 01395 517402 to apply for a form. You can post the form back to us or bring it in to the Council Offices.
Voting by Proxy
If you cannot get to your polling station on the day of an election and do not want to vote by post, you can appoint somebody else to vote for you (providing they agree). They will either have to go to your normal polling station to vote or if your proxy lives too far from your polling station to be able to vote in person, the proxy can apply for a postal proxy vote. This must be done at least 6 days before an election. You must already be registered to vote but your Proxy does not have to be registered but they do have to qualify to vote. To apply for a proxy vote, please telephone 01395 517402 to apply for a form.
We can receive the completed form by 5pm on Wednesday 27th May by:-
Email – the completed & scanned form sent to electoralservices@eastdevon.gov.uk
Fax - to 01395 517507
By mail or by hand to East Devon District Council, Knowle, Sidmouth, EX10 8HL
If you are a British citizen living abroad, but you've been registered to vote in the UK within the last 15 years, you can apply to be an overseas voter. If you were too young to register when you left the UK, your parent or guardian must have been registered in the UK.
To register, fill in the registration form here and return it to your electoral registration office in the UK.
You need Adobe Acrobat reader to open this document. If you do not currently have it installed, you can get a get a free version of the reader here.
The document must be printed single-sided and with no scaling (i.e. original size not 'fit to paper' or 'shrink large pages'
If you or your spouse is a member of the British Army, the Royal Navy or the Royal Air Force, you can still register to vote.
If you are based overseas or you live in the UK but may be posted abroad at short notice, you can apply to register as a service voter. This allows you to be registered at an address in Great Britain while you are posted abroad.
To register, fill in the registration form here and return it to the address on this page.
You need Adobe Acrobat reader to open this document. If you do not currently have it installed, you can get a get a free version of the reader here.
The document must be printed single-sided and with no scaling (i.e. original size not 'fit to paper' or 'shrink large pages'
Crown Servants or British Council Employees
If you are working outside the UK as a Crown Servant or as an employee of the British Council, you can still register to vote. You can also register if you are married to a Crown Servant or British Council employee and you are accompanying them during their employment abroad.
To register, fill in the registration form here and return it to your electoral registration office in the UK.
You need Adobe Acrobat reader to open this document. If you do not currently have it installed, you can get a get a free version of the reader here.
The document must be printed single-sided and with no scaling (i.e. original size not 'fit to paper' or 'shrink large pages'.
Click here to view Parish Elector Totals (20KB - PDF Help) showing how many people are registered in each electoral area.
To view the Electoral Changes Order, go to www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1999/19992467.htm
To look at the final Periodic Electoral Review reports concerning East Devon click this link to the Boundary Commission for England.
The Electoral Commission
The Electoral Commission is an independent body that was set up by parliament. Its mission is to foster public confidence and participation by promoting integrity, involvement and effectiveness in the democratic process.
