Department Events

Elections in the UK are effectively still Victorian. We compile a large book of names, tick them off in one of hundreds of venues across towns, cities and villages, and use little pencils to make crosses in boxes. Those crosses, the paper they are written on and the box they go in are all entrusted to a member of staff, who ferries them to a count venue to be cracked open, or locked away until the next day. We then literally pile up the votes, the person with the biggest pile wins. This is inefficient, slow and antiquated. I will explain why we must keep it this way. Voters think nationally, but most of the time, they vote locally. Our media ecosystem reinforces this. When they actually think locally, what do residents say they care about? Bins. Bins and potholes. Most elections in the UK are actually about emptying the bins.

Short bio: Martyn Harris is an elections professional working across local authorities in the West Midlands. He is currently the Deputy Electoral Services Manager at Coventry City Council, where he leads the delivery of electoral registration. A seasoned elections professional, Martyn has worked across six different councils, acting as head of elections and deputy returning officer. He has also contributed to the wider sector through his work with the Association of Electoral Administrators, Democracy Network and supporting best practice and professional development across UK electoral administration. Martyn specialises in improving participation in the elections process and promoting accessible elections.