The ultimate guide to the general election: Understanding everything from now until the next government

Rishi Sunak has called the next general election for Thursday 4 July.

It means the nation is preparing for its first polling day since 12 December 2019.

Here’s everything you need to know about the general election and how it’s going to work…

What is a general election for?

It’s a chance for people around the UK to choose the local MP who will represent their area – known as a constituency – for up to five years in the House of Commons.

There is a choice of several candidates in each constituency and there are 650 constituencies.

Most candidates are nominated by political parties, though some stand as independents.

There are 650 seats in the House of Commons, so if an MP wins in a constituency, they win that seat in the Commons.

How does it work?

We use something called the ‘first past the post’ voting system, which means MPs win seats if they get more votes than other candidates standing in their constituency.

The party that wins an overall majority of seats – so anything more than 326 MPs – wins the election and can form the next government.

People aged 18 or over in each constituency can vote once for their preferred candidate.

You can only have your say if you are registered to vote. For this election, the deadline to register is 11.59pm on 18 June. Read on for more on how to register – or check out our guide for everything you need on registering to vote.

How does this determine who becomes prime minister?

While you can’t vote for who you want to be prime minister directly, your vote in your local constituency contributes.

That’s because the political party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons at a general election forms the new government and its leader becomes prime minister.

What constituency are you in?

The July election will be fought on new boundaries, replacing the ones that have been in place since 2010.

There are 650 seats across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Just one in 10 seats – 65 – have no change to their boundaries.

That means you may be in a different constituency compared to what you were in at the last general election.

That matters because you will be voting for the politician you want to represent your constituency in parliament.

Find out what constituency you will be voting in on 4 July, how it would have voted in 2019, and how the demographic make-up has changed by entering your postcode into our lookup here.

How do I register to vote?

You have to be aged 16 or over (or 14 or over in Scotland and Wales) to register to vote.

You must also be one of the following:

• A British citizen
• An Irish or EU citizen living in the UK
• A Commonwealth citizen who has permission to enter or stay in the UK, or who does not need permission
• A citizen of another country living in Scotland or Wales who has permission to enter or stay in the UK, or who does not need permission.

The easiest and quickest way to register is online.

Alternatively, you can use a paper form. You can do this by contacting your local Electoral Registration Office and asking them to post a form to you.

Or, you can print your own form off. You’ll then need to return the completed form to your local Electoral Registration Office.

Can everyone who registers to vote actually vote in the general election?

No – the criteria for registering to vote is different to the criteria for voting in a general election. That’s because you’re registering for different types of votes, like local elections, which have more lax rules than parliamentary votes.

For example, you can vote in a local election if you’re 16 or over in some areas, but you have to be 18 or over in order to vote in a general election. More on age restrictions can be found here.

Here are the other criteria for voting in the general election:

• Must be registered to vote in the constituency
• Must be either a British citizen, a qualifying Commonwealth citizen or a citizen of the Republic of Ireland
• Cannot be subject to any ‘legal incapacity’ to vote – prisoners serving a sentence for a conviction cannot vote in UK parliamentary elections and neither can peers in the House of Lords.

Read our guide to registering to vote – including what it means to be added to the official electoral register.

How do I vote?

There are three options when it comes to voting. Whichever option you take, you must be registered to vote by the end of 18 June if you want to vote in this election.

You can vote in person at your local polling station on 4 July.

If you take this option, you’ll be sent a poll card just before an election or referendum telling you when to vote and at which polling station. It will usually be in a public building near your home, like a school or local hall.

You will be able to cast your vote any time between 7am and 10pm on the day.

Alternatively, you can vote by post. You can register to vote by post for any reason, including that you simply don’t want to go to a polling station on the day.

You can also vote by proxy, which is when someone unable to vote in person asks someone else to vote on their behalf.

For more on how to vote if you won’t be at home on polling day, read our guide to postal and proxy votes.

What happens on polling day?

Polls are open from 7am on polling day, Thursday 4 July.

You can only vote at the polling station allocated to your address.

This will be shown on your poll card. You can also enter your postcode on this website to find out where your polling station is.

You do not need to take your poll card to vote.

At the polling station, you will need to give your name and address to staff and show them your photo ID (more on the requirements for that below).

Then you will be given a ballot paper with a list of the candidates and what party they belong to.

You will vote for who you want to represent your constituency in the House of Commons – in other words, who you want your MP to be.

You vote for the candidate you want by putting a cross in the box next to their name.

There will be instructions in the polling booth telling you exactly what to do.

After you have marked your ballot paper, you fold the paper and put it in the ballot box.

For those leaving it late or who are delayed, such as by major events taking place on the same day, you must be inside the polling station or in a queue at the polling station by 10pm in order to be given a ballot paper and then vote, as laid out in rules in the Electoral Commission handbook.

What is the exit poll – and how accurate is it?

When voting closes at 10pm, the results of an exit poll are announced.

The exit poll is taken from a survey of voters in about 150 constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales that have been chosen to be demographically representative of the country.

As voters exit polling stations, they are asked who they voted for.

They mark who they voted for on a replica ballot paper and drop this in a box – replicating what they just did inside the polling station.

Analysts take these results, compare them to previous exit polls at the same polling stations and project how many seats each party will end up with once all the votes are counted.

Exit polls aren’t always perfect, but they tend to give an accurate indication of what the outcome will be.

In some years, they have predicted the winning party’s majority down to the exact number of seats – but there have been notable times exit polls have been wrong, including the 2015 exit poll that suggested a hung parliament, not a Conservative majority.

What happens when polls close?

After 10pm, once all votes are in, ballot boxes in all constituencies are taken to what’s known as a “count centre” – a large space like a community hall where counting can begin.

This is a lengthy process and goes on through the night.

Results come in throughout the night and by early morning, it is usually clear which party has the majority.

The final results tend to come in by late morning.

What is a hung parliament?

A hung parliament happens when no party has the 326 seats needed for the majority that allows them to govern outright.

Protocol means that the previous government generally remains in place while there is a period of negotiation as discussions take place to form a coalition.

It can take several weeks before parties strike an agreement to form a coalition.

If the incumbent government is unable to form a coalition big enough to rule, they may either resign and the largest opposition party may be invited to form a government, or they may try to continue to govern as a minority government.

What is the process with the new PM?

The prime minister is technically appointed by the monarch rather than the public, but the monarch honours democracy by appointing them based on which party wins the general election.

If the current government retains a majority in the new parliament after an election, it will continue in office and resume normal business.

If the election results in a clear majority for a different party, the prime minister already in office and government will immediately resign, and the King will invite the leader of the party that has won the election to form a government.

When does the new prime minister (or re-elected one) walk into Number 10?

Prime ministers, by tradition, get to move into the iconic 10 Downing Street. And of course, prime ministers who retain their role get to remain there.

It has three functions: it’s the official residence of the PM, it’s their office, and it is also the place where they entertain guests.

There isn’t a set time when a prime minister needs to move in. In fact, there is no requirement for them to move in at all if they don’t wish to.

But they do always operate at Number 10 in some capacity, even if it’s just used as their office or a place to entertain guests.

In recent times, when a prime minister has resigned or lost an election, they tend to be photographed with their families at Downing Street shortly after results are in and then drive to Buckingham Palace (or another royal residence) to formally resign.

They often make a speech outside the property’s famous black door before they leave.

New prime ministers generally go there on the same day and make a speech of their own, before entering Number 10 to applause from staff.

What are the rules on voter ID?

This will be the first general election where voters will need to take photo ID to the polling station.

There are 22 different types of ID you can use – you can find a list in our full guide to the voter ID rules.

The ID can be out of date, as long as it still looks like you and the name is the same one used to register to vote.

If you don’t have any of the accepted forms of ID, you can register for a Voter Authority Certificate.

The deadline is 26 June, and you must have already registered to vote.

If you’re voting as someone’s proxy, you need to take your own ID – not theirs.

What is tactical voting?

You may have heard the term through friends and family who are considering the best way to use their vote.

Based on what we’ve covered so far, it may sound like your only option is to vote for whichever candidate you believe will best represent your constituency.

But tactical voting is a less conventional way of voting, and is often used when someone feels their preferred candidate has little chance of getting the most votes in their constituency.

Essentially, it’s when you vote for a political party or person that you wouldn’t usually support in order to prevent another party or person from winning.

The two main ways of doing this are:

• Vote swapping – where you agree to vote for a party on someone else’s behalf, and they’ll vote for your preferred party in their constituency
• Least worst option – where you would select a different party to vote for in your constituency which you consider to be the best of the rest.

Want to know more? Read more in our guide to tactical voting.

What are the key issues the election will be fought over?

Rishi Sunak will be hoping to use the improving economic outlook to make a case that the nation should stick with him, while Sir Keir Starmer will attack the Tories’ 14-year record in government to make the case for change.

Here’s a rundown of the main battlegrounds – with more detail in our full guide to election issues.

Economy

Rishi Sunak will point to inflation coming down and recent tax cuts as signs the Conservatives are the safest hands, while hints about further tax cuts will be used to woo voters.

Labour will argue its strict fiscal rules will help bring down debt and grow the economy, likely pointing to rising food and energy bills and the mortgage chaos triggered by Liz Truss’s mini-budget.

NHS and social care

Rishi Sunak made cutting NHS waiting lists one of his main pledges, committing record funding of nearly £165bn – but a huge backlog remains.

There is also a crisis in dentistry and social care leaders have warned that rising demand and staffing issues have brought the system to its knees.

Labour’s headline pledges include promising to cut waiting times with thousands of extra appointments each week and creating shared waiting lists so hospitals can pool resources.

Immigration

Mr Sunak staked his premiership on a promise to “stop the boats” and the government’s Rwanda Bill finally became law last month – but the decision to call a summer election means planes won’t take off before people go to the polls.

Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to scrap the deal and use the money instead for a new Cross Border Police Unit to tackle small boat crossings.

Education and childcare

Education is a key dividing line between the two main parties. One of Labour’s flagship policies is to end tax breaks enjoyed by private schools to raise £1.7bn to invest in state schools.

Childcare, too, is a divisive issue. Labour has committed to keeping the government-extended free provision, but has said there are not enough staff to match the places.

Housing

The Tories pledged in their election manifesto to build 300,000 new homes a year by the mid-2020s, but that has not been achieved and the figure watered down in December 2022.

Labour has vowed to be on the side of “builders not blockers” and has announced its ambition to create 1.5 million new homes through the creation of “new towns”.

The government’s flagship renters reform and leasehold reform bills will not make it into law before the election. Labour has backed both pieces of legislation but wants to go further and says it will abolish no-fault evictions.

Crime

The criminal justice system faces major issues, with prisons overflowing, knife crime on the rise, a record-high crown court backlog, and prosecutions at an all-time low.

The Conservatives have announced plans for tougher sentences for the most serious criminals and measures to force offenders to appear in the dock.

Labour have promised to be “tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime” with pledges to fund more community police officers and give parents classes to handle anti-social behaviour.

How to watch on Sky News

Sky News will have live coverage and an award-winning line-up, bringing you everything as soon as it happens, with commentary and analysis to help you digest key developments.

Chief presenter Kay Burley will anchor Election Night Live, with analysis from Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham and the former leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Baroness Ruth Davidson.

They will be joined by Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby, the presenter of our Sunday breakfast show Sir Trevor Phillips, and data and economics editor Ed Conway.

From 7am on the morning after the vote, lead politics presenter Sophy Ridge, will be live from Westminster, joined by deputy political editor Sam Coates and Sky News contributor Adam Boulton.

Watch on TV:

Freeview 233, Sky 501, Virgin 603, BT 313, YouTube and the Sky News website and app.

Streams and social:

Watch Sky News live here, and on YouTube.

We will also be posting the latest videos and stories on TikTok, X, Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp.

Listen:

Listen to Sky News on TuneIn, and here.