It's almost time for the next Mayor of London and local council elections! Are you voter ready?

What can you vote for in May 2024?

• Local government elections in England
• Local authority mayoral elections
• Combined authority mayoral elections
• Police and Crime Commissioner elections
• Greater London Authority elections

First things first - check your eligibility to vote.

Some International students, such as those from the Commonwealth, are eligible to vote! You can check if you are from one of the eligible countries by clicking here. 

In some circumstances, students can vote twice - once for their term time address, and once for their home address. This applies to local council elections. However, please note that this does not apply to Mayoral elections, so you will need to make sure you are registered to vote in the Mayoral elections in your preferred city! Read more about this here. 

Secondly, make a note of all of the important dates.

• The deadline to register to vote in person is Tuesday 16th April 2024.
• The deadline to register to vote by post is Wednesday 17th April 2024.
• The deadline to register to vote by proxy is Wednesday 24th April 2024.
• The deadline to apply for free voter ID is Friday 26th April 2024.
• Polling day is Thursday 2nd May 2024! 

Once you have registered to vote by the deadline, find out where your local polling booth will be!

You may be already registered to vote, which you can check when you go to the voter registration page here. If you are away on polling day, you can register to vote by post or by proxy.

To find out where to go on voting day, you can find your local polling station via your postcode through this website linked here.

You can also find out other information about polling day in your local area, such as by-elections, through your local council websites. For those living in the following areas around campus, we've helped to link those in for you below:

• Camberwell College of Arts: Southwark Council
• Central Saint Martins, Archway: Islington Council
• Central Saint Martins, Kings Cross: Camden Council
• Chelsea College of Arts: Westminster City Council
• High Holborn:  Camden Council
• Lime Grove: Hammersmith & Fulham
• London College of Communication: Southwark Council
• London College of Fashion: Newham Council
• Wimbledon College of Arts: Merton Council

Remember, you will need valid Photo ID in order to cast your vote on polling day!

This includes a passport, driver's licence, or a Pass ID card - you can see the full list of accepted ID here.

If you do not have valid ID, the National Union of Students (NUS) is offering free Pass ID cards to any students who need one - the deadline to apply in order to be able to vote this upcoming polling day is Friday 26th April! You can apply for this scheme here.

Take some time to look through all the candidates' manifestos!

It is really important that you vote for those that you feel represent you and your needs best. You can find the full list of Mayor of London candidates here, and candidates for your local council elections via their websites linked above.

Finally, go out and vote on polling day!