Following changes introduced by the Elections Act 2022, postal voters must reapply for their postal vote every three years. If you vote by post and you made your current application before 31 October 2023, you need to reapply for your postal vote by 31 January 2026.
If we do not receive a new postal vote application by 31 January 2026, your postal vote will be cancelled and your voting method will be reset to vote within your polling station.
If your postal vote is cancelled, but you wish to have a postal vote again, you can apply for a new postal vote up to 5pm, 11 working days before an election.
How will you know that you need to reapply?
We will be contacting all postal voters affected by this change explaining how to reapply.
If we hold your email address, we will send an initial email to affected electors. This email will come from:
Hertsmere.elections@notifications.service.gov.uk
If we don't hold an email address, or if we don't receive a response to our email, we will send a letter, which will contain information on what to do next.
As part of your application, you will need to provide your:
Date of birth
National Insurance Number
Upload a photo or scanned copy of your handwritten signature in black ink on plain white paper.
How can I reapply?
The easiest and quickest way to reapply is online at https://www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote. Alternatively, you can print the PDF form and either scan it and email it to elections@hertsmere.gov.uk or send it via post to:
The Elections Act 2022 introduced new rules for how long a postal vote can be held for, before the need to refresh the original application. The Act also introduce a new process for applying to vote by post which has made postal votes more secure by adding an additional identity verification step.
In order to stay in line with the new legislation, we are required to cancel any postal votes that are out of date and have not been refreshed.
You can spot a genuine email from us:
the email title will be Important: Your postal vote is due to expire
the email will come from Hertsmere.elections@notifications.service.gov.uk
Some members of the same household may be contacted in different ways depending on whether we hold their email address or not.
The new process for applying to vote by post has introduced an additional identity verification step.
By providing you name, date of birth and national insurance number, we are able to check this information against records held by the Department for Work and Pensions.
The online portal to apply for your postal vote is the fastest way to reapply for your postal vote. First you will need to sign your signature on any plain white piece of paper, using a black pen. The picture can come through distorted if the paper is not clear or of a good quality which, could risk your signature being rejected.
You must then take a picture of your signature and upload as an image, when prompted on the application portal.
It is your choice of the voting method you wish to use but an inconsistent signature does not mean you cannot reapply for a postal vote. You will be required to provide a reason why you are unable to provide a consistent signature. If you have had help completing the application, that person will be required to supply their details.
You must cancel your postal vote by writing to us via email or post. Your correspondence must include your full name, address and date of birth.
After your postal vote has been cancelled, you will be able to vote by visiting your polling station on polling day. Remember, you will need to take an accepted form of photo ID with you to vote in a polling station. More information on accepted forms of voter ID can be found on the Electoral Commission website: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/voting-and-elections/voter-id
