Election jobs
Overnight/daytime count assistant
The role
Overnight and daytime count assistants assist in the verifying and counting of ballot papers after the close of poll.
The role of the count assistant is not difficult, but duties are undertaken in a pressurised environment and the greatest care must be taken to ensure that mistakes are not made.
Count assistants work in teams as designated by the Returning Officer. Each team is allocated to a count supervisor, who will provide a short briefing before the count begins.
Depending on the election, the count may take place in full directly after the close of poll at 10pm, or it will be broken into two sessions: one after the close of poll at 10pm and one the following day.
The length of time a count takes will depend on the size and nature of the election and whether re-counts are required. You must be prepared to stay as long as it takes and bring your own food.
Count assistants must:
- Not be employed by or on behalf of a candidate in or about the election (paid or otherwise)
- Be eligible to work in the UK
- Agree to the requirements of secrecy
- Conduct themselves professionally and impartially before and during polling day
Due to the unsociable hours, we cannot accept applications from under-18s for overnight count assistants.
Duties:
- Verify the contents of the ballot boxes
- Divide ballot papers into votes for individual candidates and count them using the method designated by the Returning Officer
- Re-count if required
- Work accurately under observation
Pay
Final rates of pay will be confirmed in your appointment letter.
Payment will be calculated on an hourly basis, with a minimum of four hours guaranteed. Where you are staffed to work overnight, you will receive an uplift of 50%.
All election fees are subject to tax on a pay as you earn (PAYE) basis, but are exempt from National Insurance contributions.
How to apply
You can apply for an election job at any time of the year. We will add all applicants to our staff database and you will be contacted for your availability when we begin staffing for our next election. The next scheduled election will take place on 6 May 2027.
If you would like to be added to the database for future elections, please complete the form below.
Alternatively, request a form from us: contact Electoral Services
Usually, in the run-up to an election, we will write to everyone already listed on our staff database and ask them to indicate their availability. If you are already on our staffing database, you don’t need to apply again.
Last updated: 16/06/2025 16:05
