{"id":28022,"date":"2023-04-18T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-18T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/?p=28022"},"modified":"2023-04-20T09:48:43","modified_gmt":"2023-04-20T08:48:43","slug":"four-things-disabled-people-need-to-know-about-new-voter-id-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/blog\/four-things-disabled-people-need-to-know-about-new-voter-id-rules\/","title":{"rendered":"Four things disabled people need to know about new voter ID rules"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you live in England, there are new rules that mean you\u2019ll need photo ID to vote in the local elections on 4 May. Steven explains what it means for you if you\u2019re disabled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. You might already have a valid form of ID<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you already have a form of ID, check it\u2019s on the list of accepted ID. The Electoral Commission has a full list of accepted ID<\/a> on their website. The list includes your passport, driving license, blue badge, and disabled person\u2019s bus pass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It doesn\u2019t matter if the ID is out of date, but it still has to look like you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you already have one that\u2019s on the list, don\u2019t worry, you\u2019re sorted. Just remember to bring your ID with you on the day. Remember, it needs to be the original form of ID, not a photocopy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sadly, there aren\u2019t any local elections in my region this May, but for next year\u2019s elections, I\u2019ll be setting a reminder in my phone to make sure I take my photo ID with me!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. It\u2019s free to get a form of ID if you don\u2019t already have one<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve looked through the list and can\u2019t find a form of ID you already have, don\u2019t worry. You can apply for something called a Voter Authority Certificate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a free form of photo ID that\u2019s accepted at polling stations. You can apply online or via post. I was pleased to see that the online application form seems to be accessible with my screen reader. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might want to ask someone to help you fill in the form and you\u2019ll need a recent digital photo of yourself. You can find easy read and large print versions of the application form<\/a> on the Electoral Commission website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deadline for applying is 5pm on 25 April 2023 to get your new ID in time for the elections on 4 May.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. You also need to be registered to vote<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Photo ID isn\u2019t the only thing you need to do to have your say at the polling station. You also need to have registered to vote before election day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, the deadline in England was on 17 April 2023 for the May elections, so it\u2019s too late to do so if you haven\u2019t already. That said, if you register now, you\u2019ll be registered ready for the next set of elections in your area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. It\u2019s vital to use your voice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Disabled people tend to be less likely to vote compared to the rest of the population. Of course, it\u2019s your choice whether you vote or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the more of us that vote, the more we\u2019re likely to have our voices heard by decision makers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And to do so, we need to do two things: make sure we\u2019re registered to vote and make sure we\u2019ve got a valid form of photo ID. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I know these changes may seem worrying, but hopefully the above tips and tricks should be reassuring that you\u2019ll still be able to have your say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Spread the word<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The more disabled people that get the message about voter ID, the less people are likely to be turned away from the polling station on 4 May.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Will you share this post with one friend on WhatsApp to let them know what they need to do ahead of voting?<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n

\n Share on WhatsApp<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you live in England, there are new rules that mean you\u2019ll need photo ID to vote in the local elections on 4 May. Here’s what it means for you if you\u2019re disabled.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":28024,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"display_author":[110],"class_list":["post-28022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","display_author-steven-morris"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28022","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28022"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28022\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28024"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28022"},{"taxonomy":"display_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sense.org.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/display_author?post=28022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}