General election 2024 latest news: Polls open to millions of voters across the UK as Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer to learn fate

After six weeks, the final election marketing campaign has ended, and social gathering leaders have made their ultimate pitches to voters throughout the nation. It’s now the flip of the citizens to ship the decision.

Polling stations in 650 constituencies throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Eire opened at 7am this morning. When the polls shut in 15 hours, counting will start immediately. At this level, broadcasters will announce the outcomes of the mixed BBC, ITV and Sky Information exit ballot.

We’ll then have to attend a number of extra hours till we discover out if the expected outcomes are confirmed. Over the past 4 elections the survey has forecasted the dimensions of the eventual majority with nearly excellent accuracy. 

At that second, we are going to get the primary correct preview of how the subsequent Parliament may appear like for at the least the subsequent 4 years.

All through the day we might be updating seat by seat till now we have a transparent image of the complete outcomes. 

Conservation charity the RSPB is encouraging voters to make use of the hashtag #BirdsAtPollingStations in the event that they spot any kind of fowl after they go to vote.

The concept is a variation on the #DogsAtPollingStations theme.

Charity bosses are urging social media customers to share images, movies and selfies from exterior polling stations both with actual birds or cuddly toys and use the #BirdsAtPollingStations hashtag.

With polling stations already open, many citizens may be questioning about polling station etiquette. From taking selfies to telling others about the way you voted, right here’s all the pieces you should know. 

You need to vote on the polling station to which you’ve gotten been assigned between 7am and 10pm right this moment. If you’re in a queue when the polls shut, you’re nonetheless allowed to vote. 

Once you arrive, you’ll obtain a poll paper itemizing candidates and their respective events in your constituency. You’ll have to take it to a screened sales space the place one can find a pencil to vote with. However you should use your one pen should you desire. 

Should you make a mistake, you may ask for one more poll paper when you have not put it within the poll field. Votes made with a tick or perhaps a smiley face will be counted if the selection is obvious, but when counting employees can not learn the poll, it will likely be disqualified. 

The Electoral Fee advises in opposition to taking a selfie inside polling stations as it could actually danger by accident gifting away how another person voted, which is in opposition to the legislation. However individuals are welcome to share photos taken exterior, even one with their canine. However you aren’t allowed to take photos of the poll paper you obtain in a polling station, however you may {photograph} your postal poll paper. 

Folks can inform others how they voted, however solely about their selection and never anybody else’s. The superb for revealing how one other individual voted is as much as £5,000 or six months in jail. 

Nevertheless, individuals with a incapacity can have a presiding officer, an in depth member of the family aged 18 or over or an eligible voter to mark the paper for them. Folks with a visible impairment can ask for a tool that enables them to mark their very own poll paper. A big print model is normally obtainable at polling stations. 

Evaluation carried out by Full Truth of Fb posts by 1,540 parliamentary candidates from all events has discovered greater than 300 repeats of deceptive claims:

Right here’s all the pieces you should find out about polling day.

Ofcom is not going to examine Channel 4 Information after Nigel Farage’s Reform UK claimed the broadcaster used an actor as a “plant” in its undercover investigation into his marketing campaign.

The watchdog mentioned it had acquired over 270 complaints about Channel 4 Information’s programme through which a person named Andrew Parker was filmed utilizing a racial slur for Rishi Sunak.

Ofcom mentioned after assessing the complaints in opposition to the due accuracy, due impartiality and offence guidelines beneath the Broadcasting Code, “now we have concluded that they don’t elevate substantive points warranting additional investigation”.

A spokesperson for Channel 4 Information mentioned it had strongly stood up for its “correct, rigorous and duly neutral reporting, which speaks for itself”, including: “Ofcom’s choice underscores the integrity of Channel 4 Information’s journalism and excessive editorial requirements. The programme will proceed to refute any claims that we – or the manufacturing firm we labored with – knew or paid the Reform UK canvasser, Mr Andrew Parker.

“We met Mr Parker for the primary time at Reform UK’s marketing campaign headquarters in Clacton, and he was filmed secretly by way of the undercover investigation.”

That is the primary common election the place voters in England, Wales, and Scotland should present photograph ID to vote in individual.

There are 22 acceptable types of ID, together with passports, driving licenses, older or Disabled Individual’s bus passes, and Oyster 60+ playing cards.

In Northern Eire, the place photograph ID has been required since 2003, there are 9 legitimate types of ID. Voters with out the right ID may apply for a free voter authority certificates.

If ID is misplaced or stolen after the deadline, voters in England, Scotland, and Wales can apply for an emergency proxy vote till 17.00 on polling day, permitting one other registered voter to vote on their behalf.

Many citizens have already forged their votes by put up. These with postal votes who haven’t but returned them can submit them at their native polling station by 22.00 BST or hand them in at their native council workplace throughout workplace hours.

Northern Eire will go to the polls later for a Basic Election involving a number of constituency battles that stay too near name.

A complete of 136 candidates are standing within the area’s 18 constituencies.

All eyes might be on the race for the best variety of seats, with the potential of Sinn Fein cementing its place as the biggest social gathering in Northern Eire, having come out on high within the final Meeting and native council polls.

Sinn Fein, which ran a comparatively low-key marketing campaign, may safe high spot by retaining the seven seats it already holds, if the DUP drops down from the eight seats it received in 2019.

The 2 principal events traded comparatively few onerous blows over the past six weeks, reflective of the truth that relations between them have been pretty good within the 5 months since they resumed joint management of Stormont’s restored devolved coalition authorities.