Elections (Keys and Local Authorities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026

Feedback updated 6 Feb 2026

We asked

The Cabinet Office asked for the public’s views on the development of updated regulations for both local and national elections.

You said

132 people responded, 120 of whom responded as individuals while 12 responded on behalf of an organisation or as part of a professional group.

The responses to our proposals for the amendment regulations were broadly supportive.

  • A large majority of people (94%) were in favour of candidates’ declarations of relevant interest being published online – 84% of people said they thought it was acceptable to publish these declarations as soon as practicable after the close of nominations
     
  • A large majority of people (82%) were in favour of the Cabinet Office arranging one pre-election meeting per constituency. People gave a variety of suggestions about what should be considered in arranging these meetings, including accessibility and making recordings available
     
  • A large majority of people (86%) said that allowing deputy returning officers to pre-verify postal ballots was a sensible way of making the vote count quicker on election day – 80% of people said that 48 hours’ notice to candidates in advance of pre-verification would be sufficient

We did

We are grateful to everyone who took the time to respond to this consultation. All responses were considered in full, and an anonymised summary of responses has been provided in the Consultation Response document now available online.

The responses to this consultation are being used to help inform the final drafting of the Elections (Keys and Local Authorities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026. Once finalised, it is hoped that these regulations will be put before Tynwald for approval in April or May 2026.  

Results updated 5 Feb 2026

Files:

Closed 12 Jan 2026

Opened 1 Dec 2025

Contact

Crown and Elections Team

+44 1624 685201

elections@gov.im

Overview

The Elections (Keys and Local Authorities) (Amendment) Bill 2025 (the Elections Amendment Bill) is currently being considered by the branches of Tynwald. We launched a public consultation for the Bill in December 2024 – you can read the results of the Elections (Keys and Local Authorities) (Amendment) Bill 2024 consultation online (opens in a new tab).

If the Bill is passed and receives Royal Assent, it will introduce a variety of changes to our electoral system, and we will need to update our regulations to reflect some of those changes. We are consulting on how this should happen.   

Two sets of regulations will need to be updated if the Elections Amendment Bill is passed by Tynwald – regulations for House of Keys elections and regulations for local authority elections (the Elections (Keys) Regulations 2021 and the Elections (Local Authorities) Regulations 2021). We intend to update both sets of regulations at the same time with the Elections (Keys and Local Authorities) (Amendment) Regulations 2026.

If the Elections Amendment Bill is passed by Tynwald and receives Royal Assent by March 2026, the amendment regulations will be put before Tynwald for approval in April 2026.

Why your views matter

In this consultation we are asking for your views about how we should make changes to three parts of the election process: publishing candidates’ declarations of relevant interests; arranging pre-election meetings; pre-verifying postal votes.

The consultation has 14 questions and should take around 15 minutes to complete.

Reasonable adjustments and alternative formats

The Department is committed to equal opportunities and our aim is to make our documents easy to use and accessible to all.

We will take steps to accommodate any reasonable adjustments and provide such assistance as you may reasonably require to enable you to access or reply to this consultation.

If you would like to receive this document as a paper copy, in another format or need assistance with accessing or replying to this consultation, please email elections@gov.im or telephone +44 1624 685201.

Responding to this consultation and questions

The closing date for responses is 12 January 2026.

You can respond to this consultation online by clicking on the 'Online Survey' link below. Alternatively you can download a paper version of this consultation in the 'Related' section below and email it to elections@gov.im

A paper verison can also be collected from and responses posted to:

Cabinet Office,
3rd Floor Government Office,
Bucks Road,
Douglas,
IM1 3PN

Areas

  • All Areas

Audiences

  • Anyone from any background

Interests

  • Elections & voting
  • Legislation