Introduction
Councils are responsible for organising all elections held in the
UK: parliamentary general elections, European parliamentary
elections, council elections and any by-elections. Elections
Managers oversee the register of electors and are responsible for
ensuring that the election process runs smoothly.
Work Environment
The work is mainly office-based. The standard working week
is 37 hours but there may be a need to work extra anti-social hours
at busy election times and on polling day.
Daily Activities
Elections managers have regular contact with their elections staff
and the council's legal services team. They also liaise with
client departments, MPs, council members, central government
departments, other public bodies and external agencies. Their
main responsibilities are to:
- liaise with all users of the service on any matters relating to
electoral services and give advice and guidance on legislative and
procedural issues;
- be responsible for designing and disseminating all the
statutory documentation produced;
- prepare reports for the Council, the Executive Board, Scrutiny
Boards and other committees;
- make sure Parliamentary and European Parliamentary election
accounts to the Home Officer on behalf of the Returning Officer are
accurate and on time;
- ensure that there are systems in place for the storage and
destruction of material following local elections and, in
connection with a Parliamentary election, arrange for all
documentation to be dispatched to the Clerk of the Crown;
- manage polling sites and polling district boundaries;
- organise a record of election candidates and agents;
- oversee the election candidate nomination process.
Elections managers also have overall management responsibility
for the elections team and may also be asked to undertake wider
corporate duties, such as:
- taking the lead on the implications of review and inspection
regimes;
- undertaking people management related tasks such as: equal
opportunities, sickness absence, recruitment and selection,
training and development, disciplinary matters, discrimination
complaints etc.;
- allocating resources within the department generally.
Skills & Interests
Election managers need to be:
- interested in politics;
- able to meet tight deadlines;
- good at working in a team;
- able to relate effectively to people at different levels
internally and externally;
- IT literate;
- able to grasp and assimilate new information
quickly;
- able to delegate and yet maintain effective control;
- able to resolve a wide range of complex electoral
problems;
- good at preparing written reports;
- able to negotiate effectively;
- able to express concepts and ideas clearly;
- adaptable and able to implement change;
- aware of the sensitive and confidential nature of the
work.
Entry Requirements
It is desirable to have an Association of Electoral Administrators
Certificate in Electoral Administration. Election Managers
would also need considerable elections and management experience
including:
- the compilation of the register of electors;
- the organisation of Parliamentary, European and local
(including parish council) elections;
- the review of polling district boundaries and polling
places.
Future Prospects & Opportunities
There may be opportunities to progress within other departments in
the council, either into other democratic services or policy
related roles, or with additional training to legal roles.
Further Information & Services
Association of Electoral Administrators www.aea-elections.co.uk
Chartered Institute of Legal Executives www.cilex.org.uk
Institute of Leadership and Management http://www.i-l-m.com
Local Government Association www.local.gov.uk
The Law Society www.lawsociety.org.uk
You may find further information about this area of work through
Careers Wales (www.careerswales.com/) or
in your local library, careers office or school careers
library.