Don’t get bungeed out of the election
‘Your choice. Make sure nothing stops you voting on May 1’ is
the message of an amusing and eye-catching voter information
campaign to raise awareness of the elections for the Mayor of
London and the London Assembly.
The £3 million multi-media campaign has been created for London
Elects and The Electoral Commission. It has a humorous style to
engage people and will run in two phases, starting on 24 March. The
first will encourage people to make sure they are on the electoral
register by the deadline on 16 April. The second phase, after the
registration deadline, will give Londoners information on when,
where and how to vote.
It is estimated that as many as 1 in 5 Londoners may not be on
the electoral register and if they want to vote on 1 May need to
register by 16 April.
The campaign kicked off on Monday 24 March with a comical advert
encouraging Londoners to register to vote.
The advert follows Ashley Thompson, a Londoner, visiting his
polling station on 1 May. As he walks in to collect his ballot
papers he is flung out of the polling station by a bungee rope into
a skip marked ‘not registered’. Unfortunately Ashley didn’t
register to vote. The advertising highlights that if you want to
vote make sure nothing stops you. Register to vote by April 16.
Register at londonelects.org.uk or call 0800 876 6444.
The adverts will run on ITV and Channel 4 and will be supported
by radio, press, outdoor and online advertising. Street teams are
also out and about across London, helping people to register to
vote on the spot.
Matt Bright, Communications Manager at London Elects said: “The
key aim of our campaign is to raise awareness of registering to
vote so that Londoners do not miss out on having their say on 1
May. The humorous approach is aimed at engaging the thousands of
Londoners who are still not on the electoral register.”
Nina Ziaullah, Head of Campaigns and Public Information, at the
Electoral Commission, said: "Voting is your chance to have your say
on the things that matter to you in your city. Don't let anything
stop you voting – if you want to vote, you need to be registered
first. That's the message of this campaign: Londoners need to
register, it's quick and easy to do, and then you're all set to
make your mark on London."
Ends
For further information contact:
Emma Cassidy at London Elects. 020 7983 4447 or email:
emma.cassidy@london.gov.uk.
Sarah Garrett at The Electoral Commission. 020 7271 0531 or
email: sgarrett@electoralcommission.org.uk
Notes to Editors:
1. Images from the advert are available on request.
2. London Elects is an independent team working directly for the
Greater London Returning Officer under separate budget and
reporting lines from the Greater London Authority. The Greater
London Returning Officer has overall responsibility, as laid out by
the Representation of the People Act 1983, for ensuring a fair and
accurate election.
3. The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the
UK Parliament. Our aim is integrity and public confidence in the
democratic process. We set the standards for running elections and
report on how well this is done. We also make sure people
understand it is important to register to vote, and know how to
vote. Our other roles include registering political parties, making
sure people understand and follow the rules on party and election
finance and publishing details of where parties and candidates get
money from and how they spend it.
4. The London Elects and Electoral Commission advertising
campaign was created by Farm. Media planning was undertaken by
Arena BLM.