Peter Stanyon, chief executive of the Association of Electoral Administrators, sets out some recommendations for boosting turn out in local elections.

As thousands of councillors and a new MP start their terms of office, election teams turn their attention to a long list of post-polls tasks.

Counterintuitively, local elections are harder to prepare for and run than UK Parliamentary general elections – with more seats up for election, more candidates and multiple ballot papers. Yet fewer people turn out to vote.

Local election turnouts are consistently lower than those for national polls. Even so, the 2024 UK Parliamentary general election saw only 59.7 percent of the eligible electorate cast a vote, the lowest since 2001. For local elections, turnout is often below 35%.

Could electoral reform help improve this? While motivating voters is affected by more than just how polls are administered – Electoral Commission research consistently finds: ‘negative perceptions of party politics and politicians contribute to people’s decisions not to vote’ – the following recommendations from our recent New Blueprint for a Modern Electoral Landscape could have a positive impact.

Weekend voting. Unlike our weekday voting, most European countries vote on Saturday and/or Sunday. Even with UK polling stations open for fifteen hours, some electors find it difficult to make it along to vote due to commuting, work or other responsibilities. Weekend voting would increase opportunities for many to vote in person.

Moving polling to weekends could also help with staffing and venue availability for polling stations and counts. Schools could be more easily used without disrupting pupils’ education.

Larger and fewer polling stations. We support a move towards larger voting hubs at fewer locations. Voters may have to travel a little further, but in many cases to more accessible venues with increased transport and parking facilities. There were 38,812 polling stations for the 2019 UK Parliamentary general election. It is increasingly difficult to find suitable venues and enough proficient staff to work a 15-hour plus day at little more than minimum wage.

Voting hubs could be sited in areas electors are more likely to be, such as shopping centres and supermarkets, rather than requiring a special trip.

Allow electors to vote anywhere in the local authority area. Embracing technology could dramatically increase electors’ options around where they vote.

Rather than only being able to attend one polling station or voting hub, using electronic electoral registers to mark off who has voted across a whole area would allow more flexibility.

Tablet use in polling stations is growing to help polling station staff deal with increasingly complex processes. With the right support and security infrastructure, expanding their use to support voters is a welcome next step.

Early voting. While early voting has not proved to increase turnout, it could offer voters an alternative to postal voting. Pilots ran in Wales during 2022, but running wider test-cases based on that learning would be a positive development.

Votes at 16. Already in place for devolved polls in Scotland and Wales, plans to lower the voting age to 16 for all polls is an opportunity to stress the importance of voting at every election.

Electoral Commission research has found voting is a habit. People who do not begin to vote early in life are less likely to do so later.

Time for e-voting? At the 2024 UK Parliamentary General Election, 26.2% of votes cast were by post. This shows many electors are already not going to their polling station. It would be easy to conclude moving to e-voting is the next logical step. However, while centralised digital platforms are supporting electoral registration and absent vote applications, we don’t think the time is right for electronic voting.

Ballot papers and pencils on strings may seem old-fashioned but are a tried, trusted and transparent process. Local checks and balances at every step from ballot box to declaration produces results accepted by all involved.

Interference from bad actors around e-voting, whether attempted or successful, could easily call the integrity of elections and results into question. Trust is crucial. Until a foolproof solution is available, paper and pencil remain the way to go.

While there are many ways running elections could be changed, legislative time and space is needed to achieve it. In the meantime, Returning Officers, Electoral Registration Officers and electoral administrators will continue their sterling work behind the scenes. A huge thank you to each and every one of them for everything they do.