Electoral Register: Commonwealth
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of Commonwealth citizens resident in the United Kingdom with an immigration status allowing them to be a qualifying Commonwealth elector.
Answered by Samantha Dixon
There are no official statistics on the number of qualifying Commonwealth citizens living in the UK who are eligible to register to vote, either in England or across the United Kingdom.
The Office for National Statistics publishes population estimates by nationality. These statistics suggest there are over one million Commonwealth nationals living in the UK. However, these figures cannot be used as an estimate to those eligible to register to vote, as it does not account for individuals’ immigration status or other eligibility criteria.
As set out in the answer to Question UIN 120063 of 18 March 2026, the Electoral Commission has previously estimated that around 66% of qualifying Commonwealth citizens may be registered to vote (as at 2023). The Commission’s estimate is based on their survey data and provides an indication of the proportion registered; however no corresponding estimate exists for the total number eligible to register.
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