East Cambridgeshire District Council

Anyone who has voted by post from more than five years is being reminded that they must provide updated details.

In East Cambridgeshire, the District Council has written to all residents who have had a postal, proxy or postal proxy since January 2007. The letter reminds them that they are required to submit a fresh specimen signature by 12 March 2012.

Absent voters (those who vote by post) are required to provide a signature and date of birth when they first apply. These personal identifiers are checked against those provided on the original postal vote application form, to ensure that they match.  

This is to prevent fraud. If they do not match, the vote cannot be counted. The personal identifiers are always kept separate from the ballot paper, so no-one knows how anyone has voted.
 
An important part of these security measures is providing a fresh specimen signature every 5 years, since people's signatures and circumstances can change over time.  The legislation requires the Electoral Registration Officer to carry out the first annual refresh of signatures by 31 January 2012.
 
Voters are urged to look out for the form and return it as quickly as possible to East Cambridgeshire District Council.
 
If you have a disability which means that you either cannot provide a signature or sign in a consistent and distinctive way, please indicate this on the form and make sure the name and address of your helper is provided.
 
If you no longer want to vote by post, you must respond by ticking the relevant box on the form and return it to us as soon as possible in order to avoid any unnecessary reminders.
 
If you do not return the signature refresh form by the deadline, your existing absent vote facility will be cancelled and you will have to vote in person at a polling station or make a new application.

If you have any queries, please contact electoral services on 01353 665555 or email elections@eastcambs.gov.uk