Election 2019
European Parliament Election - 23rd May 2019
Elections for the European Parliament take place every five years and member states of the European Union will go to the polls to elect members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from 23-26 May 2019. The UK is represented by 73 MEPs subdivided into 12 electoral regions. Scotland is an electoral region and is represented by 6 MEPs. You can find who Your MEP (Opens in a new window or downloads a file) is on the European Parliament website. The Electoral Commission (Opens in a new window or downloads a file) website has more information about European Parliament elections.
The UK poll will take place on Thursday 23 May 2019 between 7.00am and 10.00pm. The Regional Returning Officer (RRO) is Kenneth Lawrie who has overall responsibility for the Election for the Scotland Region but Local Returning Officers are responsible for the conduct of the poll in each local authority area. The Local Returning Officer for the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar area is Mr Malcolm Burr, Chief Executive.
The result of the Election cannot be announced until after the close of poll in all member states. The Count for the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar local counting area will take place in Ionad Spòrs Leòdhais on Monday 27 May 2019 at 8.00am.
Nominations
Nomination papers may be obtained from the address below and during the time for delivery of the nomination papers. Delivery of all nomination papers including deposits and consents to nomination must be made in person to the following address:
The Elections Office
City Chambers
High Street
Edinburgh
EH1 1YJ
Telephone: 0131 469 3126
Email: elections@edinburgh.gov.uk
Each political party or independent candidate nomination requires a deposit of £5,000. Nominations for either an individual or a registered party open at 10.00am, Tuesday 16 April 2019 and completed nomination papers must be submitted no later than 4.00pm, Thursday 25 April 2019.
Further information for candidates and agenda is also available from the Electoral Commission website and Nomination Packs (Opens in a new window or downloads a file) are available to print and download for candidates and agents.
Am I eligible to vote in this election?
In the UK, British citizens and EU or Commonwealth citizen resident in the UK can vote in European parliamentary elections. If you are a British citizen living abroad you can vote at European elections for up to 15 years after you have left the UK.
To be eligible to vote in this election you must be 18 or over and not subject to any legal incapacity. Please contact the Electoral Registration Office (ERO) Tel: 01851 706262 or email: ero@highland.gov.uk or visit the Your Vote Matters (Opens in a new window or downloads a file) website for more information on registering to vote, voting by post or by proxy.
Voting System
MEPs are elected using the "closed regional lists" system. Political parties put forward several candidates within each European Parliamentary electoral region. This list of candidates is known as a regional list. The party prioritise its candidates so those at the top of the list will have a better chance of becoming an MEP. You have one vote and you can only choose the party you wish to vote for, not the individual candidate. This is why the list is said to be "closed". The only time it's possible to vote for an individual is if there is an independent candidate, not standing for a political party. The number of MEPs a party gets elected in each region depends on the overall share of the vote the party receives. More information about Proportional Representation and the Quota System (Opens in a new window or downloads a file) involved in allocating seats can be found on the European Parliament website.
Contact Details
Election Office
Council Offices
Sandwick Road
Stornoway
Isle of Lewis
HS1 2BW
Tel: 01851 822613
Fax: 01851 705349
e-Mail: elections@cne-siar.gov.uk