More than a third of Birmingham’s adults may not have the opportunity to vote in the upcoming general election.

According to the Office for National Statistics, there are around 780,000 adults living in Birmingham, with only 614,000 of these on the electoral register. This number will include students who are registered in their home constituency and non-commonwealth citizens who do not have the right to vote in UK elections.

Nationally, 14% of adults in England have not registered to vote. These figures come as the public are being encouraged to register to vote in the upcoming general election on December 12th.

Ladywood is one of five constituencies in Birmingham which have more unregistered adults than the majority that the incumbent received in 2017. 45,000 adults are not on the register which amounts to 41% of the total population.

The MP for Birmingham Ladywood, Labour’s Shabana Mahmood, received a majority of 28,000 in 2017 which, in theory, could be overturned if the remaining eligible members of the public registered. Edgbaston, Selly Oak, Erdington and Northfield make up the list of Birmingham constituencies with these large levels of unregistered residents.

With weeks to go until polling day, there are signs that more young people than ever could use their vote this time around. In the last four months, according to Birmingham Live, 1.3 million people aged between 18-34 have registered to vote in England. This is 50% higher than the same period in the run up to the 2017 general election.

Some have cited the electoral registration system as the reason so many people miss out. Speaking to Birmingham Live, Darren Hughes, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society said, ‘our out-dated registration system means there are millions of voters missing from the electoral role.’

The method for registering to vote is still an opt-in system despite voting being a universal right. This leads critics to believe that many people do not even realise they have to actively register to unlock their vote. 

The deadline for registration is 26th November.