Yesterday was the deadline to register to vote in the EU Referendum (unless you’re going to be away on June 23rd in which case the deadline for a postal vote is today).
Last night, just hours before the deadline, as people were attempting to register in time the government’s website crashed.
Reports are showing that record numbers of people were trying to sign up, 525,000 people made registration applications. This beats previous highs. Last May, before the general election 485 people signed up.
What have we learned here? Well, firstly that pretty much everyone leaves important stuff to the last minute. But, also, isn’t it just typical that the government’s website would crash at such a crucial time?
Mps, including the Lib Dem’s Leader Tim Farron and former Labour Minister Yvette Cooper, are lobbying the government to extend the deadline because they fear that the crash could mean that tens of thousands of people won’t have been able to register to vote in time, meaning they’re effectively disenfranchised.
From the Electoral Commission’s most recent 2014 estimate some 7.5 million people were not correctly registered to vote despite being eligible. In a tight contest, such as the EU referendum, this really matters. As does voter turnout , which was just 43% amongst 18-24 year olds at last year’s general election.
The online voter registration system is supposed to make it easier for people to sign up to vote. However, it seems it’s not able to cope with demand. This just serves as a reminder about how archaic the whole system is. Surely there must be a way of making it even easier to register to vote. We do pretty much everything with our mobile phones now. We can move money around with apps and nothing terrible ever seems to happen so is it really so farfetched to imagine that there could be an app that allows people to sign up and cast their vote?
Last month I registered an application to vote on the day of the deadline for the mayoral elections in a borough where i’ve been paying council tax for 6 years. When I called them to confirm whether or not they had any record of me they said that they couldn’t verify my address!
There must be a better way. Especially for young people, who tend to move around more than other generations. Does the whole system really need to be so cumbersome and complicated?
Like this? Then you might aslo be interested in:
Here's Why Hilary Clinton Isn't The Definitive Democrat's Presidential Candidate. Yet.
Tinder Is Jumping On The Brexit Bandwagon To Try And Get You To Vote
Follow Vicky on Twitter @Victoria_Spratt
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.