Only 8,000 of the Island’s 16,000 postal voters have applied to renew their postal vote ahead of an end of January deadline set by a change in election law, leaving potentially a further 8,000 without their postal votes.

The Elections Act 2022 now requires postal votes to be renewed every three years.  All postal voters who made their current application before 30 January 2024 are now required to reapply for their postal vote by 31 January 2026. If a new application is not received by this date the Electoral Registration Officer is required by law to cancel the postal vote, and electors will have to vote in person at a polling station until a new postal vote application is received or if a proxy is appointed.

It is understood that the drop in the number of postal voters on the Isle of Wight is similar to that experienced by local authorities on the mainland.

Isle of Wight Council’s Electoral Services Team have sent out emails and letters to the current list of postal voters and received around 8,000 responses. An application form was sent to those who had not renewed by mid-December that they can complete and return if they are unable to renew their postal vote online. However, there is a concern that many people who have had their postal votes for several years have not realised that they now must regularly reapply to receive their ballots in the mail.

Returning Officer Claire Shand said: “Isle of Wight Council elections are scheduled to take place on Thursday 7 May, and we don’t want a situation where people get to late April and realise their postal vote doesn’t arrive because of this change in the law. If you intend to continue to vote by post and haven’t reapplied, please do so as soon as possible.”

Voters can reapply for their postal vote by using the following process:

How to reapply

The quickest and easiest way to reapply for a postal vote is on the GOV.UK postal vote website.

As part of the application, voters will be required to provide their:

• Date of birth
• National Insurance Number
• Upload a photo or scanned copy of your handwritten signature in black ink on plain white paper.

Electors must prove suitable identity as part of the application process.  Identities will be verified against records held by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). If this identity check fails, voters have to provide evidence of their identity.

With the introduction of the Elections Act 2022 postal votes will now expire at the end of the third January after an approved application. For example, an application made on 1 November 2025 will expire on 31 January 2028.