Working at elections

Are you interested in helping us run local and national elections? Each year we employ hundreds of staff at election time to make sure that the process is run smoothly, in an open and transparent way.

We are looking for new people to work with us and would love to hear from you. You do not need to work for the Council already to work for elections. Full training will be provided.

However, you cannot work for elections if you have campaigned on behalf of a candidate or party, nominated a candidate or have a personal relationship with an elected representative or candidate.

Applying to work for the council during an election

To work for us, you need to sign up to our database. We will then contact you to set up an online account.

Sign up to our election jobs database

Personal requirements

To work at the elections, you must:

• be 18 years of age
• have a national insurance number
• have the right to work in the UK
• be able to correspond via email, as all job appointments and information will be shared via email

What roles are available?

Each year we have vacancies for a range of roles at:

• Polling stations
• The count

How we allocate staff

• Ahead of each election, we will contact everyone on our database to ask for their availability and which roles people are interested in doing
• Once staff have told us they are available, we will allocate on a first-come, first-served basis
• If staff have expressed a preference for a particular role, or to work with certain colleagues, we will try to take that into account

For some roles, job allocation will be made based on previous experience and performance.

Working on the day

You will not be permitted to leave the station during the day, and there is no guaranteed breaks during the day.  You will be expected to bring food and drink for the duration of your shift.

(Working in a polling station is not subject to the European Working Time Directive.)

Last updated Friday, 30th June 2023

• Next Working at a polling station