General election: More than two million submit applications to vote
Government figures show that people under the age of 25 were behind more than a third of the applications.
Wednesday 20 November 2019 14:34, UK
More than two million people have submitted applications to register to vote since the general election was called.
Government figures show that a total of 2,048,039 applications were lodged between 29 October and 19 November.
People under the age of 25 were behind more than a third of them (35%), while a further 30% came from 25 to 34-year-olds.
Just 5% of applications were from people aged 65 and over.
The deadline for applications is next Tuesday, 26 November.
Full details on how to sign up can be found at gov.uk/register-to-vote.
In order to cast a ballot, someone must be registered to vote, aged 18 or over on election day and also be either a UK or Irish citizen or a qualifying Commonwealth citizen living in the UK.
Voters will go to the polls on 12 December, in what will be the first Christmas election since 1932.
While the volume of applications suggests a growing interest, the increase in applications should not be taken as direct evidence of a surge in the numbers of people able to cast ballots.
In previous elections there have been applications from people who are too young to vote - the legal age is 18 - and from voters who are already on the electoral register.
Electoral Commission figures published earlier this week show that an estimated 25% of black voters are currently not registered, as are 24% of Asian voters and 31% of people with mixed ethnicity.
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