On 6th May we in Locks Heath will have an opportunity to vote for councillors to represent us in Fareham Borough Council. There will be five seats in contention, one for each of the Western Wards of Park Gate, Sarisbury, Warsash, Locks Heath and Titchfield Common. Each elected councillor will serve for four years until May 2014. It is quite likely that on the same day there will be a general parliamentary election, but the date for that election has yet to be announced.

You can only vote in an election if your name appears on the register of electors. The Register of Electors is a list of all those residents who are eligible to vote. The register is prepared and published on 1st December each year, following a canvass of all households in the Borough. It is then updated on a monthly basis until September when the annual canvass begins again. It is a requirement of law for everyone who is eligible to be registered, even if they do not intend to vote. You are not registered automatically, even if you pay Council Tax. Once registered you will be sent a poll card early in April telling you where to go to vote.

If you’re not yet registered you must do this by 20th April. You can download the registration form here.  If you have moved house since 15 October 2009 and haven’t registered at your new address you will need to do this.

You may also vote by post, either on a permanent basis or just for a specific election. Your ballot paper will then be sent to you about a week before election day, together with a statement which you must complete in order to validate your vote. You then mark your ballot paper in the usual way and seal it in the ballot paper envelope and return it before the close of poll. Over 11,000 people in Fareham have already registered to vote by post. If you would like to do this you can download the form from here. You will need to do this by 20th April.

There will be a lot more election stories coming up in the future. Follow the debate on LocksHeathPeople!

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For further help and advice telephone the Election Services at Fareham Borough Council on 01329 236100, e-mail electionservices@fareham.gov.uk or follow this link.