The Greater London Authority Elections (Amendment) Rules 2026

Published: Thu 23rd Apr 26

These Rules amend the Greater London Authority Elections Rules 2007 to modify the procedures for manual ballot counting in Mayor of London and London Assembly elections.

The measures authorize Constituency Returning Officers to separate, verify, and count ballot papers at multiple times and locations within an Assembly constituency.

The Rules also mandate the mixing of postal ballots and ballots from different boxes before counting begins and remove requirements related to electronic counting systems for these specific scenarios.

Arguments For

The explanatory note states that the amendments allow for the verification and counting of ballot papers to be undertaken in more than one location within an Assembly constituency and at different times.
The document implies a transition to manual counting procedures by providing modifications to Schedules 4 and 8 of the 2007 Rules, which govern elections where ballot papers are counted manually rather than electronically.
The legislation invokes section 36(2A) of the Representation of the People Act 1983 as the legal basis for these changes.

Arguments Against

Legal commentators might note that allowing counts to occur at different times and locations within a single constituency could complicate the oversight duties of election observers and candidates' agents.
Administrative bodies may face increased logistical demands or costs by managing multiple concurrent or staggered verification sites rather than a centralized location.
The document does not provide a full impact assessment, noting that no significant impact on the public sector is foreseen, which could be challenged if local authorities incur higher operational expenses.

Citation, commencement, extent, saving and interpretation

-(1) These Rules may be cited as the Greater London Authority Elections (Amendment) Rules 2026 and come into force on 15th May 2026.

(2) These Rules extend to England and Wales only.
(3) These Rules do not apply to an Authority election for which the notice of election( 3 ) is published before the day on which these Rules come into force.
(4) In paragraph (3), 'Authority election' has the meaning given in rule 2(1) of the 2007 Rules.
(5) In these Rules, 'the 2007 Rules' means the Greater London Authority Elections Rules 2007( 4 ).

This section establishes the official name of the instrument and sets the effective date as 15 May 2026.

It limits the legal reach of the rules to England and Wales and includes a saving provision, ensuring the new rules do not apply to any election where the official notice was published before the commencement date.

Amendment of the Greater London Authority Elections Rules 2007

-(1) The 2007 Rules are amended as follows.

(2) In paragraph 3 of Schedule 4, in Table 1-
(a) in the entry for CMER rule 47, LMER rule 48 and MER rule 47 (attendance at verification etc.), in the second column for the modifications to paragraph (1) substitute-

'In paragraph (1)-

(a) for 'verification' substitute 'separation, verification';
(b) for 'the time' substitute 'each time';
(c) for 'verify' substitute 'separate, verify'.';
(b) in the entry 'CMER rule 49 (verification and the count)', in the second column, for substituted paragraph (4) substitute-

'(4) After completing the proceedings under paragraph (1) or (1A), the CRO-

(a) must-
(i) mix any postal ballot papers with the ballot papers from at least one ballot box,
(ii) mix any ballot papers from a ballot box with the ballot papers from at least one other ballot box, and
(b) having done so, must count the votes given on the ballot papers used in the election in the Assembly constituency.';
(c) in the entry 'LMER rule 50 (verification and the local count)', in the second column, for substituted paragraph (4) substitute-

'(4) After completing the proceedings under paragraph (1), the CRO-

(a) must-
(i) mix any postal ballot papers with the ballot papers from at least one ballot box,
(ii) mix any ballot papers from a ballot box with the ballot papers from at least one other ballot box, and
(b) having done so, must count the votes given on the ballot papers used in the election in the Assembly constituency.';
(d) in the entry 'MER rule 49 (verification and the local count)', in the second column, for substituted paragraph (4) substitute-

'(4) After completing the proceedings under paragraph (1) or (1A), the CRO-

(a) must-
(i) mix any postal ballot papers with the ballot papers from at least one ballot box,
(ii) mix any ballot papers from a ballot box with the ballot papers from at least one other ballot box, and
(b) having done so, must count the votes given on the ballot papers used in the election in the Assembly constituency.'.

(3) In paragraph 2(2) of Schedule 8, in Table 1-

(a) in the entry for CMER rule 47, LMER rule 48 and MER rule 47 (attendance at verification etc.), in the second column, before the modifications to paragraph (4) insert 'In paragraphs (1)(b) and (2), for 'the time' substitute 'each time'.';
(b) for the entries 'CMER rule 49 (verification and the count) and LMER rule 50 (verification and the local count)' and 'MER rule 49 (verification and the local count)' substitute-

| 'CMER rule 49 (verification and the count) LMER rule 50 (verification and the local count) | In paragraph (1)(a), omit 'together'. After paragraph (1)(d) insert- '(da) separate the ballot papers relating to the election from those relating to the other Authority elections.'. Omit paragraph (4). For paragraph (8) substitute- '(8) After completing the proceedings under paragraph (1) or (2), theCRO- (a) must- (i) mix any postal ballot papers with the ballot papers from at least one ballot box, (ii) mix any ballot papers from a ballot box with the ballot papers from at least one other ballot box, and (b) having done so, must count the votes given on the ballot papers used in the election.'. In paragraph (9), omit 'cause the electronic counting system to'. | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | MER rule 49 (verification and the local count) | Omit paragraph (11). In paragraph (1)(a), omit 'together'. After paragraph (1)(d) insert- '(da) separate the ballot papers relating to the election from those relating to the other Authority elections.'. Omit paragraph (4). For paragraph (8) substitute- '(8) After completing the proceedings under paragraph (1) or (2), theCRO- (a) must- (i) mix any postal ballot papers with the ballot papers from at least one ballot box, (ii) mix any ballot papers from a ballot box with the ballot papers from at least one other ballot box, and (b) having done so, must count the votes given on the ballot papers used in the election in the Assembly constituency.'. In paragraph (9), omit 'cause the electronic counting system to'. Omit paragraph (11).'. |

This section amends the rules for Constituency Returning Officers (CROs) during manual ballot counts.

It introduces a requirement to separate ballot papers by specific election type before verification and mandates the mixing of postal ballots with regular ballot box contents to preserve anonymity.

Furthermore, it updates attendance rules to accommodate verification occurring at multiple different times and removes statutory references to electronic counting systems for these manual procedures.

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