Where is my nearest polling station? A step-by-step guide to voting in the general election
It is easy to find the address of where you need to vote
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Your support makes all the difference.It's the big day of the general election, you've used our smart app to decide who to vote for - but now you can't find your polling card and have no idea where your polling station is.
If that sounds familiar, or if you're planning to vote on the way home from work and didn't take in your card, or even if you didn't receive one in the first place, there's no need to panic.
You can still find out where you need to go, and you don't need to take your polling card with you when you do. To vote, follow these simple steps.
1. Find your local elections office
While you can't find the address of the polling station where you are registered online, you can out who to talk to who can then tell you.
Enter your postcode on the About My Vote website, which is run by the Electoral Commission, here. It will tell you where your local elections office is and how to contact them.
2. Ring them up
The helpful staff at the local elections office for your area will be able to tell you where you are registered to vote, and how to get there.
3. Go there
Find the time to make your way down to the polling station, now you know where it is. The stations are all open between 7am and 10pm - and if you turn up and get in the queue before 10pm, under new rules you will still be able to vote even if the deadline passes while you wait.
4. Vote
When you get to the polling station, give your name and address to staff at the polling station. They should then give you a ballot paper (or two if there are local elections going on in your area).
To ensure that voting takes place in secret, you must cast it in the polling booth. That's the wooden thing with the curtain attached. Read the ballot paper carefully - it will tell you how to make your vote.
Usually this is by placing a cross next to the candidate of your choice, though other marks, such as a tick, are usually deemed acceptable. No other marks should be put on other parts ballot paper, or your vote may not be counted.
Then fold your ballot paper in half and place it in the ballot box.
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