Renters – don’t miss your vote
Published: by Shelter
Private renters come in all shapes and sizes; students, young professionals, families, pensioners – living in privately rented homes all over the country, renting for lots of different reasons.
But there is one thing we all have in common – renters move house. A lot.
In fact, 80% of renters, around 6 and a half million adult private renters, will have moved house in the last 5 years.
This means that keeping track of who needs an up-dated address can be a bit of a nightmare. We’ve all been there; we remember to call our bank and change address, but the supermarket loyalty vouchers end up gracing the welcome mat of your previous residence for at least three months. Updating our driving license; changing doctor’s surgery; even informing the kids’ schools – it happens, but sometimes a bit later than we’d like.
There is one area that is often completely neglected, however.
Renters are the group least likely to be registered compared to people living in all other tenures. In fact we estimate that there are 1.75 million private renters who are eligible to vote, but aren’t registered. And its no surprise – around 6 and a half million adult private renters in England will have moved since the last General Election.
With more than 11 million people now privately renting across the UK, it is more important than ever that renters are represented at the ballot box. But without registering to vote, renters will loose the opportunity to have their say on May 7th.
Registering to vote is easier now than ever before.
You can register online, and update your name or address. All you need is your National Insurance Number (you can find this on pay or benefit documents, although you can still register without it).
The deadline to register is April 20th.
No matter how you feel about the general election – if you’re a keen voter or you feel apathetic towards the whole thing – you will lose the choice to vote if you do not register.
Whether you’re a renting student, young professional, family, or pensioner, wherever you live, make sure you have the opportunity to vote on May 7th by registering now.