On Election Day

On an Election Day, unless you have a postal or proxy vote, you should head to your polling place to cast your vote. Each polling place will be open from 7am to 10pm to allow sufficient time for everyone to vote. Please make sure beforehand that you are registered to vote!

Your poll card tells you where you should go to vote. It is likely to be a community building, or perhaps a school, near where you live.

Once inside the polling place, there may be more than one polling station. Street lists will help you identify where to go.

At the polling station staff will ask for your name and address and check that you are on the register.

You can show them your poll card, although you do not necessarily need this to vote. They will then hand you a ballot paper or papers relevant to the election taking place and direct you to a polling booth.

In the booth you should mark the paper appropriately, first reading any instructions on the ballot paper or displayed on the walls. The booths are there for you to mark your vote in private. Do not mark the paper other than as indicated otherwise your vote may not be counted.

Then walk over and put your paper in the ballot box. For Local Government Elections the ballot boxes may be made of recycled material. For all other elections ballot boxes will be made of sturdy plastic.

To view a short video showing you what to do on an Election Day, please click on the image below:

In larger Polling Places, there may be an information officer who can answer any questions you may have about the voting process. If you think you may need particular help, please see the Voters with Disabilities information pages.

For the 2007 Elections the Electoral Commission and the Scottish Executive produced a short animated walk through to demonstrate how to vote on election day which can by viewed by clicking on the link.