Electoral administrators call for review of all existing electoral law and production of single Electoral Administration Act

The Association of Electoral Administrators (AEA) has issued a wide-ranging report on electoral reform in the UK, containing some 57 recommendations, and warned that elections are being delivered in spite of “fragmented and outdated” legislation.

The report, New Blueprint for a Modern Electoral Landscape, draws on the frontline experience of the AEA’s more than 2,000 members to suggest how elections could be run more effectively for candidates, electors and administrators alike.

The AEA highlighted recommendations including:

• an earlier postal vote application deadline of 16-working days before a poll rather than 11, “allowing more time to print, send and return postal voting packs – helping both home and overseas voters”
• reviewing accepted voter ID and potentially including digital formats such as the recently announced digital driving licence
• considering whether shorter polling hours, weekend voting and larger voting hubs for wider areas – as opposed to more and smaller polling stations – would help voters and increase turnout.

The report also calls on governments "to bring resilience and capacity to elections" by implementing:

• an independent Royal or Parliamentary Commission review of core election delivery processes
• a review of all existing electoral law to produce a single Electoral Administration Act which respects devolved nation differences
• a review of supplier capacity to identify and mitigate against potential risk.

AEA chief executive Peter Stanyon said: “Constant electoral change without fundamental reform has made elections harder than ever to deliver to the standard voters rightly expect.

“With votes from 16 coming to England and UK polls and changes in devolved nations, we can’t continue bolting 21st century voter expectations on to 19th century infrastructure. The risk of failure increases with every change made.”

Andrew Smith, AEA chair, saidd: “Elections run year-round. Whether a poll is small and local or high-profile and national, all every Returning Officer, Electoral Registration Officer and electoral administrator wants is to deliver safe, secure, and accurate elections the public has trust in. This report builds a picture of how we could improve elections for everyone involved.”