City is ‘right place’ to trial new polling station.
The UK’s first ever central voting point is having the final touches added before it gives Milton Keynes voters the option to cast their ballot in the city centre at this week’s local elections.
For voters who are living near, working in, or just visiting the city centre, the Central Voting Hub will be open inside the main shopping centre’s Midsummer Place area, offering a convenient alternative to travelling back to their usual polling station.
Voters will still receive a ballot paper for the ward they live in and are registered to vote in, just as they would at their local polling station. But it’s hoped the hub, which will be open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday’s election day, will make it easier to fit voting into a busy day. Officials also hope it will encourage a greater turn-out of voters. This year’s Milton Keynes City Council election is expected to be one of the most significant yet.
A record 310 candidates are contesting 60 council seats across 21 wards, with every seat up for election following the introduction of brand‑new ward boundaries by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. The changes reflect Milton Keynes’ rapid growth and represent the first review of the city council’s electoral map and representation since 2014.
Milton Keynes City Council is the only authority to trial a Polling Day Central Voting Hub in a Government pilot designed to make voting more convenient for people whose plans or routines mean they are away from their local polling station on election day. Similar approaches are already widely used in other countries particularly in the United States, where they are known as Super Precincts.
“The Government made a call for pilots last year to all local authorities and we came up with the concept of having a central voting hub on Polling Day in the shops in Milton Keynes,” said Sharon Bridglalsingh, the Returning Officer for Milton Keynes City Council.
“We are the only local authority who are doing voting like this on the day. It seems inconceivable that a polling station is open from 7am to 10pm in your local area and you can’t get to it to vote but our lives are so busy and we have so many things to do. The reality is that the shops in MK are the highest area of footfall and people pop in and out all the time to do things – eat, shop, run errands – so it felt like the right place to trial a voting hub.”
Digital security is one of the most important elements of a voting hub, and all 133 polling stations are speaking to the hub in real time which prevents someone from voting twice. Voters will be marked off using an electronic tablet when they are issued with a ballot paper, with the systems securely connected to ensure voting records are updated in real time.
“The hub gives you the opportunity to visit somewhere else instead of your local station but not vote twice. In fact, it’s an offence to vote twice,” said Sharon. “One in three jobs in this city is technology based so it seems fitting that we are running this pilot and its technology, here.”
The hub will be equipped with McGonagle Readers, assistive devices that read ballot paper information aloud through headphones, allowing voters to understand their choices clearly, privately and independently.
As with all polling stations, voters will need to bring photographic ID in order to receive a ballot paper and it’s advisable to take your poll card too.
Officials say the experience of going to the hub will be the same as if attending a local polling station, but with the added convenience of being central and easy to access.
“This gives people who know they will be in the city centre on election day a clear, practical option to vote where they already are,” said Sharon. “I would encourage voters to make use of it as it will be secure and convenient.”
“Hosting the UK’s first city centre Central Voting Hub at Midsummer Place is something we’re incredibly proud to support,” said Simon Martin, Midsummer Place centre manager.
“As a destination that welcomes thousands of people every day, we’re in a unique position to make voting more accessible and convenient for those who live, work or spend time in the city centre.”
