Local elections get wired

Councils are experimenting in the May 2 elections with new systems of voting aimed at boosting turnout and speeding counts.

Electronic voting is being used for all seats up for election at Newham, east London, - for both mayor and councillors, Bolton and Stratford on Avon.

Newham has a touch screen system: Voters are given a card to unlock the voting machine. They then touch boxes alongside names on a list on screen to pick their first and second choices in the election for mayor. After finalising this choice they move on to a display of council candidates. When they have made their selection here, they are then asked to "touch here to vote" and the card is returned. When polls close a cartridge is removed and taken to the town hall for the count.

Bolton uses a "stand alone" voting machine with a keyboard and computer screen. At the end of counting a cartridge is removed, taken to the counting centre and fed into a counting machine.

Stratford-on-Avon: Voting will take place through a touch-keypad system - each key with a candidate's name. Cartridges will be taken from the polling stations to one of the four counting centres across the area and put on to a computer - then either electronically sent to the council headquarters in Stratford or or taken from the counting centre to the HQ.

There will be electronic voting for a handful of wards at Chester, Liverpool, St Albans and Sheffield.