This month, more than 60,000 households will be contacted to make sure Stafford Borough’s electoral register is up to date.
With elections for Staffordshire County Council and the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner expected to take place next May, you must be on the register to vote in local and national polls. But not being on the register also affects a person’s credit rating which can lead to issues when buying a house or taking out a phone contract, for example.
Letters will be sent out from Monday 27 July asking residents to check whether information that appears on the electoral register for those living at their address is correct. And for the first time the council will be using email to collect responses for the annual canvass, if people have previously supplied their email addresses to the Elections Office, in a move that the authority hope will speed up the process and save taxpayers money.
A change in national regulations which allows local authorities to collect information via email also means around 15,000 people will be sent an email from Monday 6 July and if the information is correct the recipient only needs to reply to say so.
Electoral Registration Officer, Tim Clegg, who is Chief Executive of Stafford Borough Council, encouraged people to respond as soon as possible to the canvass to save the cost of reminders having to be sent out.
He said: “Your right to vote on who runs the government or local authorities, who make decisions affecting all our lives, is the cornerstone of a healthy democracy.
“It is very easy to make sure you are able to have your say at future elections, simply check the information on the letter or email when it arrives and return it as promptly as possible.”
The canvass will also help identify any residents who are not registered so that they can be encouraged to do so. Anyone needing to change details can do it online or contact Stafford Borough Council.
He added: “And remember if you have moved house in the last 12 months you will need to be registered at your new address so please look out for these letters or emails.”
You can contact the election’s team at elections@staffordbc.gov.uk or 01785 619424 if you have any queries. People who are not registered can do so at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote.
