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Cardiff Council and the Vale of Glamorgan Council say they are aware of a delay in Royal Mail delivering around 200 postal ballots to voters in the Penarth area of the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency.
Vale Council previously said an investigation had been launched after members of the public were left furious about their postal votes not having arrived, some as recently as July 1 – the General Election is on July 4.
One reader, who didn’t want to be named, said they were “extremely annoyed” their postal vote didn’t arrive before they went on holiday.
Ian Thompson wrote on Facebook on July 1: “Is anyone else in Penarth having trouble getting their postal votes for the election? Mine still hasn’t arrived.”
Wendy Youde replied to Mr Thompson’s message, saying: “Mine didn’t arrive. I had to go to Barry to collect it today! Totally disorganised.”
Royal Mail insist there is “no backlog”, while the Prime Minister’s official spokesman said Sunak is not concerned that some people could be disenfranchised by the issues.
“We’re working closely with the Electoral Commission, returning officers, Royal Mail and the print suppliers to support the resolution of these issues,” he told journalists.
In the latest statement, both Cardiff and Vale Councils said: “Cardiff Council and the Vale of Glamorgan Council are aware of a delay in Royal Mail delivering around 200 postal ballots to voters in the Penarth area of the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency.
“Although Penarth falls under the Vale of Glamorgan Local Authority area, this is part of the Cardiff South and Penarth constituency, and so voting arrangements are managed by Cardiff Council, which has issued more than 56,000 postal ballot packs in recent weeks.
“Both councils are concerned about this situation and are working with Royal Mail to identify the cause of the delay.
“Initial communication indicates that a number of postal ballots were held up in Royal Mail’s sorting system.
“Arrangements are in place for Vale of Glamorgan residents who have not received their postal ballots to collect these from the Civic Offices in Barry where they can also be completed and submitted to ensure these residents can cast their vote.”
