This is a brief guide to researching records of historic electoral registers. The National Archives does not hold any complete collections of electoral registers. The British Library holds a complete set from 1947 onwards, and older electoral registers are held mostly by local archives.
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What do I need to know before I start?
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Try to find out:
- the name of the person
- a street address
- a date range to focus your search
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What records can I see online?
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Some electoral registers and poll books are available on commercial websites such as Ancestry (£There may be a charge for accessing this information. Searching indexes may be free.) and British Origins (£There may be a charge for accessing this information. Searching indexes may be free.) and it is likely that more will be added in the near future. To find out what is available look on family history websites or use a search engine such as Google.
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What records can I find at The National Archives at Kew?
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There are no complete collections of electoral registers at The National Archives.
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What records can I find in other archives and organisations?
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Local electoral registers
Consult ARCHON to find the relevant local archive.
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Electoral registers from 1947 onwards
Search the collection of electoral registers at the British Library from 1947 onwards.
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Electoral registers in Wales and Scotland
The National Library of Wales and National Library of Scotland hold many sets of electoral registers for their respective regions.
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What other resources will help me find information?
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Read Parliamentary Constituencies and their Registers since 1832 by Richard H A Cheffins (British Library Publishing Division, 2000).
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Births, marriages and deaths in England and Wales
Census
Births, marriages and deaths in the armed forces