Key points
- Countdown is on until polls open in the general election
- Polling stations will be open from 7am until 10pm
- How to watch election night coverage on Sky News
Jargon buster: Decoding electoral language
Over the next few days, both here in the Politics Hub and on TV, you will hear plenty of different terms - some of which you may have heard before, some not.
So here is some of the jargon you might read and hear in our coverage of the next couple of days…
Battleground
This refers to a seat which one - or more - political parties have earmarked as a potential loss or gain. Typically, these areas will see a significant amount of campaigning in the run-up to polling day. They tend to be marginal seats, or those where MPs have resigned.
Blue Wall
This is a term used to describe constituencies largely in southern England which have historically supported the Conservative Party.
Coalition
When two or more parties form a government together because no one political party has the majority of seats in parliament.
Confidence and supply
This is not quite the same as a coalition, but still requires a party to strike a deal with another to form a government. Confidence deals, according to the Institute of Government, "typically make clear that the support party or parties must back the government on explicit confidence votes, and votes on budgets and supply (government spending). In return, the support parties are given government support for specific policy priorities."
Constituency
This is a geographical area where voters elect a single MP to represent them in the House of Commons. At present, there are 650 parliamentary constituencies in the UK.
Exit poll
Put simply, this is a poll of voters taken immediately after they have left polling stations. It asks which way they voted, and can give a good indication of the result in certain areas. It is published at 10pm on voting day when the polls close, and gives an indication of how the results could go.
First past the post
This is the electoral system used for the selection of MPs in the House of Commons. Voters select a single candidate for their constituency, and the person with the most votes wins.
Hung parliament
This is when a general election ends without a single political party having the majority of seats in the House of Commons. This situation can lead to a coalition or confidence and supply agreement - as explained above.
Majority
The easiest way for a political party to form a government is to win the majority of seats in parliament. There are 650 MPs in the Commons. Therefore, to have an overall majority, a party must win over half of these seats - at least 326.
Manifesto
This is a public declaration of policy published by a political party ahead of a general election.
Marginal
This is a constituency seat which is won by only a small margin, usually 10% or under. This means that only a small change in voter habit could see a party lose the seat - and this could be critical. Marginal seats are viewed as the "battleground" of an election.
Minority government
In a minority government, the governing party has the most seats - but still less than half the total. In the UK, this would mean the party has less than 326 seats in the House of Commons.
Red wall
This is a term used to describe constituencies largely in the north of England and in the Midlands which have historically supported the Labour Party.
Swing
The swing is the percentage change in the vote share from one party to the other. It indicates the scale of the change between two parties.
Swing voter
A swing voter is a person who does not have a strong political affiliation, and could give their vote to any number of parties on polling day. These voters can be critical to the outcome of an election, particularly in marginal seats.
Tactical voting
This is when a voter chooses a candidate they would not normally support, in a bid to prevent another candidate from winning.
What counts as voter ID?
This is the first general election in which all voters will need to provide ID in order to cast a ballot.
There are 22 different types of ID you can use. For people without photo ID, Voter Authority Certificates are available - but you must have applied by 26 June.
Here's everything you need to know.
What ID can eligible voters use to vote in elections?
- Most forms of existing photo ID will be accepted, including:
- UK or Northern Ireland photocard driving licence (full or provisional)
- driving licence issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Isle of Man or any of the Channel Islands
- UK passport
- passport issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, or a Commonwealth country
- PASS card (National Proof of Age Standards Scheme)
- Blue Badge
- biometric residence permit (BRP)
- Defence Identity Card (MOD form 90)
- national identity card issued by the EU, Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein
- Northern Ireland Electoral Identity Card
- Voter Authority Certificate
- Anonymous Elector's Document
The following travel passes will also be accepted:
- older person's bus pass
- disabled person's bus pass
- Oyster 60+ card
- Freedom Pass
- Scottish National Entitlement Card (NEC)
- 60 and Over Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
- Disabled Person's Welsh Concessionary Travel Card
- Northern Ireland concessionary travel pass
Voters can still use photo ID that is out of date, as long as it still looks like them and the name is the same one used to register to vote.
What ID do you need if you're voting as someone's proxy?
You'll need to take your own ID if you're voting on someone else's behalf. You do not need to take theirs.
How to follow Sky’s general election coverage
The fastest results, the sharpest analysis and an award-winning line up - as the general election unfolds, Sky News will bring you the full story, first.
Whether you want to settle down in front of the TV, stay in the know on the move, or keep updated from work, we'll have live coverage across our platforms to bring you everything as soon as it happens.
We'll have expert commentary and analysis to help you digest key developments, kicking off with the exit poll and running through the weekend.
What's happening - and when?
Thursday
Polls are open from 7am until 10pm - and during that time, you won't see any coverage of politics or policy due to strict reporting restrictions.
But Sky News will still be bringing you colourful snapshots of polling day, from leaders casting their ballots to the important business of dogs at polling stations, on TV and right here in thePolitics Hub.
9pm Thursday into Friday
Chief presenter Kay Burley will anchor Election Night Live, the overnight results programme, from a 360-degree immersive studio normally used by Sky Sports shows like Monday Night Football, alongside our expert team.
As soon as the polls close at 10pm, Sky News will bring you the exit poll - your first insight into how the general election results could play out.
7am Friday
From 7am on the morning after the nationwide voting, lead politics presenter Sophy Ridge, host of Sky's Politics Hub programme, will be live from Westminster bringing viewers every development as the election result is absorbed and plans for the next government are made.
Ridge will be joined by deputy political editor Sam Coates and Sky News contributor Adam Boulton across what will be a historic day, as the nation awaits the next prime minister.
How to watch
The Politics Hub
This live blog will feature the latest results, swift and in-depth analysis, as well as reactions to the results across the country and much more - sobookmark this page!
Shortly after the polls close we'll have a seat-by-seat lookup to let you see the forecast result in your constituency and through the night we'll have a live, interactive results service to give you the big picture as well as the result where you live.
Watch on TV for FREE: Freeview 233, Sky 501, Sky Showcase, Virgin 603, and BT 313.
Streams and social: Watch Sky News livehere, and onYouTube.
We will also be posting the latest videos and stories onTikTok,X,Instagram,FacebookandWhatsApp.
Listen: Listen to Sky News onTuneIn, andhere.
What is the exit poll?
The exit poll is the first big moment of the night - the moment millions tune in for a first indication of the eventual result of the general election.
Commissioned by the broadcasters - Sky News, the BBC and ITV News - the fieldwork is carried out by Ipsos UK who will have interviewers at 133 polling stations around the country this year.
People who have just voted will be asked to privately fill in a replica ballot paper and place it into a ballot box as they leave their local community centre, church hall or station.
Researchers can only deploy to a fraction of the total constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales, so locations are chosen to best reflect the demographics of the country with an urban and rural spread.
However, many of the locations will be in marginal seats, where the swing between the main parties will be tracked.
The same polling stations are targeted year after year so the swing from the last election's exit poll, along with other data at constituency level, can be analysed by those crunching the numbers.
The data collected at the polling stations is sent back by interviewers to Ipsos UK at several stages throughout the day.
It's processed there and sent via a secure data pipeline to the broadcasters' statisticians and political scientists who are locked down in a secret location in the capital.
Electoral rules mean that no polling can be reported while people are voting - Sky News and the other broadcasters will cover it in full from 10pm.
Election coverage begins on Sky News from 9pm, and it is free, wherever you get your news.Here is how to watch and follow live.
Key election day timings
After weeks of campaigning, polls are due to open very soon and voters across the nation will have their say.
Here are the key timings of the day:
7am Thursday: Polls will open across the United Kingdom.
9pm: Sky News’ Election Night Live programme starts (click here for details on how to watch).
10pm: Polls will close and counting will begin.
10pm: Broadcasters’ exit poll will be published, giving the first indication of the election.
Around 11.30pm: First seats will be declared.
Around 4.30am Friday: We will likely know for certain who will form the next government.
7am: Sophy Ridge and Sam Coates broadcast the fallout from the election live on Sky News.
That's all for tonight
Thank you for joining us in the Politics Hub for live coverage of the final day of the general election campaign.
It was back on a rainy Wednesday 22 May in Westminster that Rishi Sunak walked out onto Downing Street to announce the date of the general election, and the date that voters would decide the future of the country.
Tomorrow is that day - polls will open at 7am, close at 10pm.
You will see almost no political coverage from Sky News tomorrow - strict rules prevent us from any coverage that could impact the way people vote.
But we will have coverage here in the Politics Hub of the party leaders casting their ballots - and of dogs at polling stations, of course!
At 9pm tomorrow, chief presenter Kay Burley will anchor Election Night Live, the overnight results programme, from a 360-degree immersive studio normally used by Sky Sports shows like Monday Night Football, alongside our expert team.
And as soon as the polls close at 10pm, Sky News will bring you the exit poll - your first insight into how the general election results could play out, and live coverage of the results throughout the night.
So do join us tomorrow for what is set to be a historic general election - and don't forget to vote (and bring ID!).
What happened in the 1832 general election - and why is it relevant?
By Tim Baker, political reporter
Blockbuster polling from YouGov is forecasting Labour to score the biggest electoral win since 1832 - read more on that here.
This was a significant date in the history of UK democracy.
The vote in 1832 came after the introduction of the Great Reform Act - the legislation that paved the way for the currently used system of constituencies represented by MPs.
Previously, MPs represented boroughs or counties - the boundaries of which could date back hundreds of years.
This led to the phenomena of rotten boroughs - areas where no one lived any more but still had the right to send MPs to Westminster.
The most famous of these is perhaps Old Sarum, near Salisbury, which sent two MPs voted for by around 11 people - effectively decided by the landowners.
And growing cities like Birmingham and Manchester had no MPs.
It was also not uncommon for rich landowners to control other counties and boroughs, as voting was done publicly.
After much debate, the Whig party - the forerunner to the Liberals - managed to introduce the Great Reform Act, which overwrote this system.
It wasn't completely modern, with women not able to vote, but it did extend the franchise slightly past what it used to be.
A total of 86 boroughs were removed, and 31 were reduced to sending one MP.
Some 67 constituencies were created, with areas like Manchester, Birmingham, and Leeds getting representation for the first time.
It was brought in against a background of public calls to reform the political system, and people wanting to remove parliament from the influence of rich landowners.
The Whigs had won a majority in the Commons in 1831 to introduce the changes - but had been blocked by Tories in the Lords until they finally managed to push it through with the help of King William IV.
So it is no surprise the party which introduced the reform won a huge majority against those who opposed it.
This is why it is notable that Sir Keir Starmer is forecast to get close to matching the majority of224 won in the election called after the Great Reform Act in 1832.
Starmer appears on course for a historic victory - but if he wins, he'll have a new mountain to climb
We've just heard from our political editor Beth Rigby, who delivered her last live analysis of the general election campaign.
Standing where it all began, six weeks ago in Downing Street, Beth said that "what is almost certain is that Keir Starmer will walk through that door as Britain's prime minister" by the time the votes are counted.
"That outcome is almost completely assured," she said.
She said that if it comes to pass, it would be a "stupendous victory" after suffering in 2019 its worst defeat since 1935,
"People thought Labour might be locked out of power for a decade - Sir Keir Starmer himself said he had a mountain to climb to bring Labour back.
"Well, tonight he stands on the cusp of becoming only the fourth ever Labour leader to win from opposition.
"The last man who did that - you will probably know it - is Tony Blair in 1997."
Beth went on to say that although the Labour leader appears on course for a big majority, how big it will be "is difficult to say" as there are "dozens of marginal seats still in the toss up".
Nonetheless, she said,"the evidence suggests it's going to be better than Boris Johnson's majority 80-seat majority in 2019 - and could go much further than that".
"After four election defeats on the bounce, this is going to feel transformative for Labour, and for the country too."
But she also warned that there "could be dozens of seats which are won by small margins and low vote shares".
"Starmer’s support might be broad, but very shallow too.
"That’s why in the campaign, you've heard Starmer talking about leading humbly, putting government back into the service of working people and putting country before party.
"Because he knows all too well that the victory could great, but the inheritance is hard, and the honeymoon with the British people could be very short indeed.
"Tomorrow then momentous, as will Friday - but only the end of the beginning for a Labour Party, perhaps into government, with a new mountain to climb."
Farage will 'think about' quitting if he doesn't win Clacton
Nigel Farage has admitted it would be a "big step back" if he doesn't win the contest in Clacton at the election.
The Reform UK leader is hoping to win his first seat in parliament and has previously said he is playing the long game, with his sights set on the next election in five years' time.
But he had conceded to needing to have a rethink if he misses out.
Asked if he would resign, he said: "I shall go for a drink and think about it."
According to YouGov's final MRP poll, Reform UK is on course to win three seats - including Clacton.
The other candidates there are:
- Matthew Bensilum, Lib Dems;
- Craig Jamieson, Climate Party;
- Tony Mack, independent;
- Natasha Osben, Greens;
- Jovan Owusu-Nepaul, Labour;
- Tasos Papanastasiou, Heritage Party;
- Andrew Pemberton, UKIP;
- Giles Watling, Conservatives.
Ofcom dismisses complaints about undercover report about Reform UK
You may recall that during the election campaign, Channel 4 News went undercover with Nigel Farage's Reform UK campaign, and filmed activists making racist and hom*ophobic comments.
Mr Farage and his party leadership claimed the report was a stitch-up of some kind, and that the broadcaster used an actor as a "plant" to damage them.
The media watchdog, Ofcom, said it received over 270 complaints about the programme, and it decided to "urgently" assess them, given that it is the election period.
The complaints were assessed under Ofcom's rules arounddue accuracy, due impartiality, and other offence rules under the Broadcasting Code.
However, those complaints have been dismissed.
The regulator said in a statement: "For all of these complaints, we have concluded that they do not raise substantive issues warranting further investigation.".
A spokesperson for Channel 4 News said: "Ofcom's decision underscores the integrity of Channel 4 News's journalism and high editorial standards.
“The programme will continue to refute any claims that we - or the production company we worked with – knew or paid the Reform UK canvasser, Mr Andrew Parker.
"We met Mr Parker for the first time at Reform UK's campaign headquarters in Clacton, and he was filmed secretly via the undercover investigation."
Reform UK has been approached for comment.
