What photo ID will you need to vote in the May elections?
Summary
Voters in England must show photo ID to vote in the local elections on 7 May. Scotland and Wales do not require photo ID for their elections on the same day.Key Facts
- More than 20 types of photo ID are accepted in England, including passports, driving licences, and bus passes for older or disabled people.
- Out-of-date photo ID is allowed if the voter still looks like the photo.
- Voters wearing face coverings must briefly remove them for ID checks.
- If a voter in England loses or forgets their ID, they can apply for an emergency proxy vote until 5 p.m. on election day.
- People without acceptable photo ID can apply for a free Voter Authority Certificate, but the deadline for the May 7 election has passed.
- About 0.4% of voters were turned away in the previous May 2025 local elections for lacking ID, with most returning later with valid ID.
- England and Northern Ireland require photo ID for all in-person voting, but Scotland and Wales do not.
- The government introduced photo ID rules to prevent vote theft, although large-scale election fraud is rare in the UK.
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