SUPA’s Short and Sweet Guide to Voting on 7th May

In case you’ve been living under a cave for the last six months, you should know that on 7th May a little thing called the General Election is happening.

Whether or not you’re a first time voter or just a little confused to how this all works, on behalf of Southampton University Politics Association (SUPA) and Wessex Scene we’re here to help!

Registering

First things first, you can’t vote without registering.  All you need is 5 minutes and your National Insurance number (if you have one). Register or update your details here.  You can register at both you your term time address and your home address, but you can only cast one vote in the UK Parliamentary General Election.

Voting

There are three ways to vote, in person, by post, or by proxy.

1) By Person. Need to cast your vote at a local polling station? SUSU will be providing a Safety Bus service on the day to the nearest polling station. There’s a little bit more info here

2) By Post.  Once you are registered individually you need to fill in a postal vote application form. A postal vote can be set to your home address or any other address that you give. Postal vote packs are usually sent out about a week before Election Day. Make sure you send it back so that it arrived by 10pm on 7th May! This is useful if you want to vote at home but will be in Southampton on the day. Get some more info here.

3) Proxy Vote. Appoint someone you trust to vote on your behalf if you are unable to get to the polling station. Once you are registered individually, you’ll need to fill in a proxy vote application form. Get more information here.

Who do I vote for?

That we can’t help you with, only you can answer that. We can direct to a site we’ve been raving about for a while, called Vote For Policies. On it you can take a survey to find out which party affiliates to your opinions!