Isle of Wight residents will be preparing to go to the polls next week to have their say in the local and Police and Crime Commissioner elections on Thursday 6th May.
The council’s elections team is geared up and ready to make sure that everyone who is entitled to vote is able to do so in a COVID-secure way.
Polling stations will be open from 07:00 on the day and will close at 22:00 and there will be a number of COVID safety measures in place, including social distancing, regular cleaning of poll booths, screens and hand sanitiser readily available. Residents are asked to check their poll card to make sure you know where your polling station is.
For those who choose to vote in person, people are encouraged to keep themselves and others safe by:
- wearing a face covering
- bringing their own pen or pencil
- cleaning their hands when entering and leaving the polling station using the sanitiser provided
- keeping a safe distance
- choosing to take a free rapid response COVID-19 test for people without symptoms before heading to the polling station
Rapid response (LFT) testing is available for everyone without COVID-19 symptoms. For more information on how to get tested, visit keeptheislandsafe.org/communitytesting
Voters should not attend the polling station if they have symptoms of COVID-19, or if they have been asked to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace. Provisions are in place to apply for an emergency proxy vote up until 17:00 on Election Day if required due to health circumstances.
Claire Shand, Elections officer for Isle of Wight Council, said:
“In order to make sure those voting in person can safely have their say, we have put in place a number of safety measures at our poll stations – some of which people will have seen in place in other areas of life, such as encouraging hand sanitising, socially distance and mask wearing.
Article continues below this advertisement “We will have restrictions on the number of people in a polling station at one time which will mean there are may be socially distanced queues at times. However, we are confident that the actions we are taking will keep voters safe on the day and registered voters need not worry about voting in person.
“If you want extra piece of mind and help keep others safe too, you can also take up the free offer of a COVID-19 rapid response test either at home or at County Hall.”
If, after 17:00 on Tuesday 27th April, you find you are unable to attend your polling station in person due to a medical emergency, or due to your occupation, service or employment and you only become aware of that fact after 17:00 Thursday 25th April; then you may be able to appoint an emergency proxy to vote on your behalf.
Contact the electoral services team by email on [email protected] ; in writing to: Electoral Services, Isle of Wight Council, High Street, Newport, Isle of Wight PO30 1UD or call (01983) 823380.
Emergency proxy votes can be issued up to 17:00 on 6th May 2021. For more information on the local elections, please visit www.iow.gov.uk/Council/Elections/
Find out who your local councillor is, how and where to vote and the results of previous elections at www.isleofwight.vote - the Island's new hub for all things related to Local and General Elections, brought to you by Island Echo.
The best way to vote in a coved safe way is to not vote for any of the councillors that are in county hall right now.
So true.
I will be Covid safe and not bother going to Vote.
Don’t forget there are still so many things we cannot do in this country under the Tory Rules of Covid
But they are opening the Polls so people can vote!
Still cannot eat or drink inside but can go and vote
Lol
that should be covid, typo…
I will not be voting Tory that is one way of keeping secure
Won’t be voting at all .as their isn’t any one worth voting for.
Exactly. Count me out as well.
They are all the same.
If we had a democracy I may have a vote that counted. But whilst we have a system that allows a cricketer have more say in the running of the country just because he was very good at cricket is loony. (Lord Botham) Become a lord, get to decide, without any election, on laws that affect us all. Sounds much like a dictatorship.
Keep the blue flag flying high..
Is that a clean beach endorsement? If so, German car man, your oil tankers providing petrol don’t do anybody any favours…
Brexit done and dusted,well done Boris, now time to return to my roots,keep the red flag flying high!