Royal Mail delivery office to be checked on July 4 after postal vote delays

Election officials plan to check the Royal Mail delivery office on general election day to ensure that no postal votes are left behind.

They aim to prevent a repeat of the problem last year when Royal Mail delivered nearly 1,500 postal votes to Brighton and Hove City Council the day after polling day.

At the time, in May 2023, the council’s deputy returning officer Michael Appleford sent a strongly worded letter to Royal Mail and raised the issue with the Electoral Commission.

After the local elections in May last year, Councillor Steve Davis said that there had been just 19 late postal votes at the 2019 local elections.

The Green opposition leader added that the number of late postal votes nationally had totalled 23,389.

Last month, far fewer votes arrived late for the two council by-elections – in Kemptown and Queen’s Park wards – and for the Sussex police and crime commissioner (PCC) election.

Votes had to be in the council’s hands by 10pm on Thursday, May 2 – and of the 27,385 postal votes issued, 151 arrived too late as follows.

Tuesday, May 7 – 53 votes arrived

Wednesday, May 8 – 38

Monday, May 13 – 9

Tuesday, May 14 – 50

Wednesday, May 15 – 1

The Kemptown and Queen’s Park by-elections each had seven postal votes arriving late on the same days as the delayed PCC post.

Brighton and Hove City Council said: “Our acting returning officer is working closely with Royal Mail and will continue to do so throughout this election period.

“At our most recent election – the May 2024 PCC vote – the number of postal voting packs received after the close of poll was not significant.

“For the general election, a deputy acting returning officer will also be visiting the Hove delivery office on polling day to check for any undelivered postal voting packs.”

Anyone wishing to vote in the general election on Thursday, July 4, needs to be registered by 5pm on Tuesday, June 18. Postal votes must be registered by 5pm on Wednesday, June 19.

For those who do not have the required photographic ID, the deadline for registering for a voter authority certificate is 5pm on Wednesday, June 26. The same deadline applies for applying for a new proxy vote.

To vote in person, electors need to take their photo ID (identification) – such as a passport or driving licence – to their designated polling station.

They open at 7am on July 4 and close at 10pm.