Issue - meetings
Update of preparations for the Mayor and Local elections 2018
Meeting: 12/10/2017 - General Purposes Committee (Item 4)
4 Update of preparations for the Mayor and Local elections 2018 PDF 133 KB
Preparations in place for the Mayor and Local Government elections 2018.
Additional documents:
Minutes:
Will Tuckley, Chief Executive and Louise Stamp, Head of Electoral Services, introduced the report, which outlined preparations in place for the Mayor and Local Government elections 2018.. Mr Tuckley and Ms Stamp provided additional detail on the election preparations.
· Following feedback from recent elections, a greater number of Polling Station Inspectors will be deployed in May 2018.
· East Wintergarden, Canary Wharf, remains the currently proposed count venue, though the Council is continuing to explore possible alternatives. Several members of the Committee expressed concerns with the security of East Wintergarden.
· Further to the postal voting pilot outlined in the report, the Committee stressed that the proposed leaflet to inform electors who to inform if they suspect fraudulent activity, needed careful consideration of its design to maximise its clarity and effectiveness. Committee members asked that they be provided with an advance copy of the leaflet.
· Further to questions on the rate of postal vote rejections, Mr Tuckley advised that the percentage of rejects had decreased overall in recent years. Ms Stamp advised that a video guide to completing postal votes will be produced, which it is hoped will further reduce the rate of rejected postal votes. The Committee welcomed this initiative, but asked that this be coupled with outreach work. The Committee discussed the risks associated with delivering postal votes to homes in multiple occupation. Ms Stamp advised that measures would be put in place to mitigate this risk, including full briefing of delivery staff.
RESOLVED:
That the General Purposes Committee:
1. Notes the content of the report.