Electoral Registers are lists created annually of people who are eligible to vote and include their reason for eligibility, such as their residence or ownership of a property. This record set currently holds records for 1910-1931 and a smaller number of records for 1932. This invaluable record set includes those first entitled to vote after 1918 and is an excellent substitute for the lost 1931 England & Wales census.
The detail in each register varies but will include some or all the following information:
Transcripts
Name
Year
Polling district or place – This will include polling districts or wards. Civil parishes are not indexed and will need to be searched by keyword.
Constituency
County
Images
Address or abode
Nature of qualification or a description of the property
Name, description and residence of a landlord or another person to whom rent is paid
Occasionally occupation or age
Electoral Registers are lists created annually of people who are eligible to vote and include their reason for eligibility, such as their residence or ownership of a property. The codes on the electoral register will explain an individual’s eligibility to vote. A list of the codes and meanings are available below.
Electoral Register codes:
As the British electorate increased and more people were given the right to vote in both parliamentary and local elections, the registers began to use codes to decipher an individual’s basis of voting qualification.
In registers from about 1850 onwards, the word ‘successive’ can appear next to a person’s residence. This means that the individual has moved within the last 12 months and their qualification to vote carries over to the new home.
Registers after 1918 included the following codes:
A dash ( – ) – Person could not vote in the election
R – Residence qualification
BP – Business premises qualification
O – Occupational qualification
HO – Qualification through husband's occupation
NM – Naval or military voter
Registers after 1928 include two codes next to an elector’s name. The first code is a qualification to vote in parliamentary elections. The second code is the voter’s qualification to vote in local elections.
R – Residence qualification (man)
Rw – Residence qualification (woman)
B – Business premises qualification (man)
Bw – Business premises qualification (woman)
O – Occupational qualification (man)
Ow – Occupational qualification (woman)
D – Qualification through wife's occupation
Dw – Qualification through husband's occupation
NM – Naval or military voter
Attached to names, the following extra codes can sometimes be seen
J – Eligible to serve as a juror
SJ – Eligible to serve as a special juror
a – Absent voter