The OIC has issued a reminder to people in Orkney who use a postal vote that they can still hand this in on the day of the poll for the local elections where we elect our councillors, Thursday May 4th up till 10pm. In Orkney 3,629 (25%) people have a postal vote for the local elections. 16/17yr olds and EU Nationals also have a vote in the local elections.

“Voters should also take time to ensure that they have completed the postal voting statement correctly, making sure that they have signed the statement and filled in the box for their date of birth.”

“Postal votes can be returned to the Council by post or handed in to any polling station on polling day (4 May). Postal voters can also hand their completed pack into the Council’s One Stop Shop in Kirkwall on 4 May, posting it through the letterbox if it is after 17.00 (but still before 22.00).”

The count will be done electronically and will take place on Friday 5th May.

For the General Election for the constituency of Orkney & Shetland, to be held on Thursday 8th June, the count will be held in Orkney and the votes counted through the night. The votes from Shetland will be transported to Orkney. In 2015 the count was held in Shetland.

Orkney has a high number of postal votes and voter turnout in that category is always high.  In 2015, in a close fight between the SNP and the LibDems, Alistair Carmichael held onto his seat by a hugely reduced majority of 817 votes. This result was then challenged in the Election Court where it was proven that Carmichael had lied to affect his election and those of others. Alistair Carmichael succeeded in winning 1 out of 3 of the charges arguing that his vote was not a personal one and that his lie had been of a political nature which the public expect of politicians.

Reporter: Fiona Grahame