Postal vote changes – help spread the word locally

As part of your role in supporting democratic engagement in your communities, please be aware of important changes to postal voting that affect Cornwall’s residents.

What’s changing?

Under the Elections Act 2022, all existing postal vote arrangements will now expire after three years. Anyone who had a postal vote in place before the new rules came into effect will continue to receive one until 31 January 2026. After that, residents must reapply if they wish to continue voting by post.

Over 65,000 of Cornwall’s postal voters will need to re-apply. Cornwall Council’s Electoral Services team will begin the re-application process in July 2025. This will give voters the maximum amount of time to avoid their postal vote being cancelled.

Cornwall Council will contact residents by email or via post. Please let residents in your area know to act on this information if they receive it. This doesn’t apply to all postal voters, as some have only recently applied. The Council will only contact those who need to take action.

Residents can reapply in the following ways:

• Online:www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote
• Paper forms:Available on the Cornwall Council website at www.cornwall.gov.uk/postalrefresh or by calling Electoral Services on 0300 1231 115