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29/04/2019 - Permalink

Information about the 2019 European Parliamentary elections

Related topics: Democracy

The 2019 European Parliamentary elections are scheduled to take place in the UK on Thursday 23 May. The elections will take place in other EU Member States between Thursday 23 and Sunday 26 May.

Shropshire, along with 29 other local authorities which make up the West Midlands region, elects seven MEPs to represent the region.

Voting in the UK will take place between 7am and 10pm on Thursday 23 May.

In the Shropshire Council area, votes will be verified and counted on Sunday 26 May and the result – the number  of votes cast for each party – will be announced from 10pm that day. The overall result for the West Midlands region, including the names of winning candidates, will be announced in Birmingham.

There’s information about the elections  in Shropshire on the Shropshire Council website – click here. But, below is a summary of the key things that you might like to know.

Registering to vote

To vote in the European elections you must register to vote by Tuesday 7 May. To register go to http://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. It’ll only take five minutes.

Poll cards

Poll cards have been sent to everyone in the Shropshire Council area who is already registered to vote.

Parties and candidates

For a list of the registered parties and their individual candidates, click here to see the ‘statement of persons nominated’.

List of polling stations

For a list of polling stations in the Shropshire Council area, click here. Check your poll card for details of your polling station.

Key dates

  • Registration deadline: 7 May
  • EU citizens declaration form due: 7 May
  • Postal vote deadline (Great Britain): 5pm – 8 May
  • Proxy vote deadline (Great Britain): 5pm – 15 May
  • Polling day: 23 May

EU citizens

EU citizens registered to vote in the UK can choose to vote either in the UK or in the country they’re from, but not in both. Those who want to vote in the UK must complete and return a declaration form to the Electoral Registration Officer before 7 May. Citizens of the UK, Republic of Ireland, Malta or Cyprus don’t need to use this form. Go to https://yourvotematters.co.uk/

The voting system

Voting in the European elections is by proportional representation – in England, Scotland and Wales the ‘regional closed list’ system (or D’Hondt) is used. Under this system people cast their vote for a party, rather than a candidate.  There’s more here.

The below video also outlines how seats are allocated in European elections in England, Scotland and Wales.