The Government is encouraging members of the local public to make sure they are correctly registered to vote on checktheregister.ie, as the date for the local and European elections was formally confirmed, the casting of votes to take place on Friday, June 7.
Progress has been made in relation to the modernisation of the electoral registration process over the past twelve months, with improvements to the voter registration system meaning that people can now register to vote or update their details at any time using the checktheregister.ie system.
Furthermore, PPSNs, dates of birth and eircodes can also be added to the system, assisting local authorities in their work to improve the accuracy of the electoral register. Sixteen and seventeen year olds can now also pre-register to vote and will be automatically added to the electoral register upon turning 18. Work is also underway to establish a national voter registration system, with Dublin City Council recently appointed as the designated registration authority under the Electoral Acts to empower it to establish and manage, on behalf of all local authorities, a national electoral registration system.
Speaking about these improvements, Minister of State for Nature, Heritage and Electoral Reform, Deputy Malcom Noonan, stated that recent years have witnessed some of the most transformative changes to electoral registration in generations.
"Not long ago, almost everyone who wanted to register or update their information had to do so by sending a paper form to their local authority and we all recall the long queues at Garda stations at election time. The policy, legislative and technical changes we’ve made, including to checktheregister.ie, mean that you can apply to register or update your details online in just a few short minutes. I’m encouraging everyone today to ensure your local authority has the correct information to enable you to vote come polling day," Minister Noonan said.
Minister Noonan said that he was particularly pleased that local authorities can now take applications from everyone once they reach the age of 16.
“This means we can reach out to 16 and 17-year-olds while they are still in the school system and get them to register to vote, and they are automatically transferred to the register once they turn 18," the Minister added/
Minister Noonan also called on long-time voters to log on to checktheregister.ie, even if they haven’t moved or their circumstances haven’t changed.
“It’s really important that everyone confirms their details on the website. It’s not about whether you have voted before, it’s about letting your Local Authority know that your entry is current and correct, so that they can focus on identifying and, where necessary, removing entries that are out of date or incorrect. This helps to protect the integrity of the electoral register for all of us. You can confirm your details on checktheregister.ie by adding your PPSN, date of birth and eircode," the Minister stated.
