Plymouth voters will be asked to choose how they think the city should be governed in the future, following the verification of valid signatures submitted as part of a petition.
The Council received a petition requesting a directly elected mayor for Plymouth City Council. As per the legislation, the Council has validated each signature to ensure that they are registered electors in the Plymouth City Council area.
Following this process, 10,856 signatures were verified as being eligible, meaning the threshold of obtaining support from at least five per cent of registered electors in the city has been reached to trigger a referendum.
In papers published today, for the Full Council meeting on Monday 28 April, proposals set out that the referendum will be held on Thursday 17 July. This will be formally confirmed when the Notice of Poll is published, following the Council meeting.
At the referendum, those on the electoral register will be asked to have their say on whether Plymouth City Council’s governance model should be changed from a leader model to a directly elected mayor.
This process is separate from – and not related to – the ongoing discussions about Plymouth potentially joining a combined regional authority that could be led by an elected strategic mayor.
There are a number of ways to cast your vote. You can vote in person at a polling station, by post, or by appointing someone you trust to vote on your behalf, which is known as a proxy vote.
Registering to vote is quick and easy, it only takes five minutes and can be done online. Once registered you will be placed onto the electoral register. However, you will need to register again if you’ve changed your name, address or nationality.
Once registered, you can request for a postal vote application online. Having a postal vote means that a postal ballot pack containing your ballot paper will be sent to your home, so you can vote via post, avoiding the need to go to a polling station. If you’re unable to vote in person you can apply for a proxy vote and ask someone to vote on your behalf.
All registered voters in Plymouth will also need to show an eligible photographic ID to vote in person at a polling station.
Accepted forms of ID include a UK, European Economic Area (EEA) or Commonwealth passport; a full or provisional UK, EEA or Commonwealth driver’s licence; some concessionary travel passes, such as an older person’s bus pass or a blue badge.
Anyone who does not have one of the accepted forms of ID can apply for free Voter Authority Certificate online or by completing a paper form, which is available from the Council.
It is anticipated that the deadlines will be:
• Deadline to register to vote: 1 July 2025
• Deadline to apply or change a postal vote: 5pm on 2 July 2025
• Deadline to apply for Voter Authority Certificate: 5pm on 9 July 2025
• Deadline to apply for a proxy vote: 5pm on 9 July 2025.
For more information about registering to vote or applying for a postal vote or voter ID see our register to vote page.