Now that the deadline for postal vote applications has passed, postal voting packs will be hitting door mats across Wales. Voters will receive: ballot papers for the relevant Senedd and Police and Crime Commissioner elections; a postal voting statement; two envelopes; and an instruction leaflet.

With many people likely to be voting by post for the first time in these elections, the Commission is urging voters to make sure they follow the instructions carefully to ensure their vote is counted. Both the Commission and Royal Mail are asking those who have already decided who to vote for, not to wait until the last minute and post their completed ballot packs as soon as they’re ready.

Keeping postal votes safe from fraud

Anyone applying for a postal vote is asked to give their date of birth and signature. When they receive their postal vote pack, they will be asked to give this information again in the postal voting statement. These will be checked against those already provided so that the voter’s identity can be confirmed. This is a security measure to ensure postal voting is free from fraud.

It’s important that voters read the instructions carefully, and provide the right information in the right place. Half of all postal ballots rejected at the last UK general election had a signature or date of birth that did not match that given in the initial application. For example, one mistake people make when completing the statement is to provide the date of completion, rather than the date of birth.

This information is kept separate from the ballot paper which contains a person’s vote, so it will not affect the secrecy of their vote.

Vote and send

In Wales, there are Senedd and Police and Crime Commissioner elections happening on 6 May. Voters will receive two ballot papers for the Senedd election - one to elect a constituency member and another to elect a party or independent candidate to represent their region -and a third ballot paper to elect a Police and Crime Commissioner.

In some areas, ballot papers will be long, with a number of candidates and parties standing. Voters should read the instructions carefully so they can be sure they have seen all the options on the paper.

Voters should mark their vote on the ballot paper carefully and in secret. They then need to place and seal it into the envelope labelled ‘A’.

The postal voting statement and the ballot paper envelope should be returned in the envelope labelled ‘B’.

People should post their ballot back as quickly as possible to make sure it’s counted. It needs to be with their local authority by 10pm on polling day. The Royal Mail recommends sending it back by 4 May to ensure it arrives in time. If they’ve left it too late they can also take the completed ballot to their local polling station and hand it in to staff.

Rhydian Thomas, Head of the Electoral Commission Wales said: “Absent voting will play an important role in the May elections, particularly given the public health situation, and many people will be voting by post for the first time. If you’ve received your postal ballot and you already know how you will vote, then don’t wait until the last minute. Read the instructions carefully, and complete and return your postal pack as soon as you’re ready”