Introduction

Councils are responsible for organising all elections held in the UK: parliamentary general elections, European parliamentary elections, council elections and any by-elections. Elections officers help organise the process – from the day an election is called until the votes are counted.

Work Environment

Elections officers are office-based, usually in a town hall or main civic building.

Hours of work are normally 37 per week. Job share opportunities may be available.

Daily Activities

Elections officers assist elections managers with a wide range of tasks relating to the smooth running of elections. Their daily duties can include:

• keeping the register of electors up to date by sending out registration forms to every household;
• checking returned electoral registration forms for accuracy;
• dealing with election candidate nomination papers;
• arranging for ballot papers to be printed;
• booking rooms to be used as polling stations;
• recruiting and supervising temporary staff to work on polling day or at busy times in the election period;
• sending out voting papers to those who have requested postal votes;
• dealing with enquiries from the public;
• keeping up to date with electoral law and monitoring changes;
• preparing returns and statistics.

Skills & Interests

Elections officers need to be:

• good communicators,
• able to deal professionally with people from all walks of life,
• good organisers,
• able to work methodically,
• able to prioritise their time and sometimes work under pressure,
• good at working as part of a team,
• accurate, with a good attention to detail,
• computer literate.

Entry Requirements

There are no minimum entry requirements but some councils ask for GCSEs/S grades at C/3 or above, including English and maths. Alternatively, you may be able to gain entry with NVQ/SVQs or Intermediate GNVQ/GSVQ in Business Administration.

Training is given on the job. Councils encourage elections officers to obtain the certificate and diploma of the Association of Electoral Administrators, which covers registration of electors, administration of elections, electoral law, electoral systems and electoral management and finance.

Estimated salary range

£16,000 – £22,000 per year.

Please note that salary information is a guide only and there may be local agreements in place. For further information about salaries for particular positions, please contact your local council directly.

Future prospects & opportunities

There may be opportunities to progress to elections manager. It may also be possible to move into the democratic services department and work more directly with elected councillors.

Related Occupations

Follow this link to view a list of all related occuptions in Supporting Your Community.
Alternatively, follow this link to view all career profiles placed in the same job area.

Further Information & Services

Association of Electoral Administrators www.aea-elections.co.uk

Improvement and Development Agency for Local Government www.idea.gov.uk

Law Society www.lawsociety.org.uk

Law Society of Scotland www.lawscot.org.uk

Institute of Legal Executives www.ilex.org.uk

Institute for Supervision and Management http://www.i-l-m.com

You may find further information about this area of work in your local Connexions service/careers office/school careers library – under AC.

What should I do next?

Look for current local government Elections Officer vacancies in the following places:

• LGjobs.com - the official recruitment website for local government.
• Weekly, bi-weekly or monthly jobs bulletins produced by local councils themselves, available from libraries, community centres, town halls/main civic buildings and central council personnel departments.
• Local council websites.
• Local newspapers
• National newspapers – The Guardian is particularly well known for its public sector job advertisements on a Wednesday.

Find out about the council and get some work experience if possible by:

• Making the most of work experience placements arranged through your school, college or university.
• Contacting councils close to your home to find out about the work experience opportunities they offer.
• Talking to someone who does the job you are interested in – ring your local council to see if someone can spare some time.
• Making an appointment to see a careers adviser for more specific information about jobs and training.