The Different Ways to Vote
You can vote in the Mayoral Election in person at your polling station, by post or by proxy.
At your Polling Station
All polling stations in Greater Manchester will be open between 7am and 10pm. If you would prefer to vote when your polling station is quieter, then it is generally best to visit after 10am and before 2pm.
If you are registered and entitled to vote you will receive a poll card before the election, telling you the address of your polling station and other important information. Please make sure you read it carefully.
You don’t need to take your poll card with you to the polling station when you go to vote but it may speed up the process.
When you arrive at your polling station, you will be asked for your name, address and your Voter ID by the staff.
Your Voter ID can be your passport, driving licence, some types of bus pass or proof of age card, even if it's out of date, as long as it still looks like you - check you have at least one form of ID on the list and if not, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate.
The staff will check that you are registered and that your Voter ID is acceptable, before you can be issued with your ballot papers for the elections taking place on that day.
Ballot papers can only be printed in English. However, polling station guidance is available in Arabic, Bengali, Bulgarian, Cantonese, Czech, Farsi, French, Hebrew, Gujarati, Kurdish, Mandarin, Pashto, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Slovak, Somali, Spanish, Tigrinya, Urdu and Yiddish.
Completing your ballot paper
Vote in the Mayoral Election using your yellow ballot paper. You must vote for only one candidate, by putting a cross in the box next to the candidate of your choice. Put no other mark on the ballot paper or your vote may not count.
The ballot paper for the Local elections will be green, and for relevant electors the Salford City Mayor ballot paper will be lilac.
Access the audio version of the Mayoral Ballot Paper (MP3, 2.72MB)
By Post
Applying for a Postal Vote
Before you apply for a postal vote you must be registered to vote (external website).
The deadline to apply for a postal vote in these elections has passed.
You can still apply for a postal vote for future elections using the information below.
You can now apply for a postal vote online (external website). You will need your Date of Birth and National Insurance number or other identity documents.
Alternatively you can download, print and fill in the postal vote application form (external website).
Once you have completed the form and signed it, you need to send it to your Electoral Registration Office at your local Council by the deadline above. Your date of birth and signature on your postal voting statement must match the details you gave when you applied. If they don’t match, then your postal vote will be rejected. If you are unable to provide a signature or consistent signature you may be able to request a signature waiver application form from your local election office.
If you have already registered to vote by post you will be sent a postal voting pack containing your ballot papers for elections taking place in your area on 2 May 2024, a postal voting statement requiring your signature and Date of Birth and a return envelope which does not require a stamp.
Your postal vote will arrive from 19 April 2024. If you have not received your postal pack by Friday 26 April please contact your Electoral Services Team.
You should leave plenty of time to return your postal vote. If you don’t manage to post it in time you can return it by hand before 10pm on polling day to your local Electoral Services Office or a polling station in the electoral area. As a result of recent changes to the law, you must complete a short form when returning a postal vote in this way, otherwise your postal vote won’t be counted. You can return 5 postal votes plus your own, when returning them in person.
By Proxy
What is a Proxy Vote?
If you cannot vote in person on polling day, you can ask someone to do it on your behalf. This is called voting by proxy.
Your proxy should be someone you trust, and who knows who you want to vote for.
Your proxy can be anyone provided they are registered and eligible to vote in the election. They can go to a polling station to vote or apply to vote for you by post.
Applying for a Proxy Vote?
The deadline to apply for a proxy vote in these elections has now passed
If you would like a long-term proxy vote, you need to download, print and complete the relevant form (external website).
Your completed form should be returned to the Electoral Registration Officer at your local Council.