What are the requirements for voting in UK? ID rules stopped 14,000 people voting

The Electoral Commission has found that the overall number denied a vote likely to be considerably higher. They added that ethnic minorities and unemployed voters were more likely to be turned away.

Data shows that 0.25% of people who went to a polling station were denied as they were not able to show ID. However, the Commission added that the figure is believed to be higher as some of those who wanted to vote at polling stations might have turned away after reading the requirements at the entrance but were not formally recorded.

Craig Westwood, director of communications at the commission, said “it is too soon to draw conclusions”, but also said that "some of the emerging evidence is concerning".

The government recently said that ID requirements would be tightened even further for future polls.

By extending regulations to postal and proxy votes, ministers said on May 23, they wanted to “reduce the opportunity for individuals to exploit the absent voting process and steal votes”.

The new rules include anyone wanting to vote by post having to show proof of identification every three years. Anyone who requests to have someone else cast their ballot on their behalf will also have their identity checked. A proxy voter can cast a maximum of four votes, with no more than two of those being for UK residents.

The tightening came weeks after the UK’s local elections on May 4, when the Electoral Commission said that a quarter of people were unaware they needed photo ID to vote.

Up to 3.5 million people don’t have an existing photo ID. You must have already registered to vote to apply for voter ID.

To avoid getting caught out, find out below what forms of ID are valid. Furthermore, if you don’t have a valid ID, find out below how to apply for a voter authority certificate.

As per new rules enforced from May 4, people in the UK need to show a photo ID to be able to vote in the following:

Many people will have a driving licence or a passport, which are both acceptable forms of ID. However, there are other forms of ID people can use.

The following forms of ID are acceptable:

Travel passes are also acceptable forms of ID, including the following:

You can still use your ID to vote if it has expired. However, it still needs to look like you and bear your current legal name.

You can register to vote online here.

When you apply, you’ll be asked for your National Insurance Number, but you can still register if you do not have one.

You can register to vote in England if you’re 16 or older and either a British citizen, an Irish or EU citizen living in the UK; a Commonwealth citizen who has permission to enter or stay in the UK, or who does not need permission; or a citizen of another country living in Scotland or Wales who has permission to enter or stay in the UK, or who does not need permission.

If you do not have an acceptable voter ID, you can apply for a voter authority certificate.

You can apply online, and you’ll need a recent, digital photo of yourself and your National Insurance Number. If you don’t know your National Insurance Number (you can find a lost one here), you can use something else to identify yourself, such as a birth certificate, bank statement or utility bill.

Minister for Faith and Communities, Baroness Scott of Brybrook, announced the May 23 changes in the House of Lords with a written statement.

Part of this said: “Under these regulations, we are introducing appropriate safeguards to reduce the opportunity for individuals to exploit the absent voting process and steal votes. The new measures limit the total number of electors for whom a person may act as a proxy to four, of which no more than two can be for ‘domestic’ electors for all constituencies or electoral areas.”

Angela Rayner, deputy leader of the Labour Party, said in May 2023: “They [the Government] have pushed through a bill that is going to prevent certain groups, particularly young people, from voting.”

Alex Norris, the shadow elections minister, called voter ID “a solution in search of a problem”. He said the policy would deprive hundreds of thousands of people of their ability to vote.

“Will those people who were turned away by someone outside of a polling station who asked an individual if they have the ID, will they or will they not count as someone who has been denied a vote?” Mr Norris said.

The Electoral Reform Society has also opposed the system. It said it had witnessed "countless examples of people being denied their right to vote due to these new laws".