Politics affects everything, make sure you’re registered to make your voice heard

In the last few years Scotland has seen a greater voter engagement and greater political engagement than it has ever seen in its history. The reason that’s happened is because people have realised that politics isn’t some abstract thing – a thing that you have to be a politician to understand. Politics affects every aspect of your life, the bills you pay, your wages, your house, your education, your job.

On May 5th voters will go to the polls for the Scottish Parliament Election. This election will be the first time that 16 and 17 year olds have been given the power to vote for the Scottish Parliament.

Elections give you the chance to have your say about the things you care about and the issues that affect you. Voting enables you to help decide who represents you and your local area in Parliament and gives you the power to decide how Scotland is run. So, it is very important that come election time you have your say. But, the reality is that if you don’t register to vote, you can’t vote – it’s as simple as that.

The way we register to vote changed in 2014 – you are no longer automatically registered to vote but you can now register to vote online in just 3 minutes if you are going to be 16 or over on the 5th May 2016.

Visit www.registertovote.scot this week to make sure that come the 5th May you will be able to vote and have your say in the Scottish Parliament Elections.