Scottish Parliamentary by-election - Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse - Thursday 5 June 2025

A Scottish Parliamentary by-election for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency is to be held on Thursday 5 June 2025 with voting taking place between 7am and 10pm. 

The by-election will be held to fill the constituency vacancy which follows the death of former MSP Christina McKelvie.

Register to vote

Registered voters’ poll letters will be sent out the last week in April. If you are already registered to vote and are on the electoral register in South Lanarkshire, you do not need to re-register. 

To vote in this election, eligible voters must be aged 16 or over and must be registered to vote by midnight on Monday 19 May 2025. 

You can register to vote online at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote

How can I vote if I am on holiday?

If you know that you won't be able to get to the polling station on election day, and have already registered, you can apply for a postal vote. 

For more information about how to register and the different ways of voting go to our Registering and voting page.

Postal voting packs

Postal voting packs were sent on Thursday 8 May and started to be delivered on Friday 9 May. If your postal voting pack has not arrived by Tuesday 13 May, please phone 01698 455745 for assistance. The Constituency Returning Officer must receive your vote by 10pm on Thursday 5 June. If you have not posted your vote in good time to arrive by 10pm on Thursday 5 June, you can hand in your postal vote to any polling station in the constituency area on polling day. If you lose or accidentally spoil your postal voting pack, please phone 01698 455745 immediately for a replacement pack. Replacement postal voting packs cannot be issued after 10pm on Thursday 5 June.

Anyone who registers to vote after the 1 May 2025 will not receive their postal voting pack until the second run which will be sent around Tuesday 27 May and should start to be delivered from Wednesday 28 May. If you registered to vote after 1 May and your postal voting pack has not arrived by Friday 30 May, please phone 01698 455745 for assistance.

Will I need photo ID to vote at the by-election?

No, you will not need ID to vote in the Scottish Parliamentary by-election for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency.

How does voting work?

Using the first-past-the-post voting system, the candidate who gets the most votes becomes the MSP for the constituency. Voters will put a cross (X) on the ballot paper next to their preferred option. The constituency for the by-election is Hamilton, Larkhall, and Stonehouse.

Who are the candidates?

The notice of poll provides information on the candidates that stand nominated for election. 

Accessibility at the polling stations

Everyone should be able to register and cast their vote without facing barriers and should be able to vote on their own and in secret. Our accessibility at the polling stations page provides more information.

Key dates

The votes will be verified and manually counted at the close of poll on Thursday 5 June in Council Headquarters, Almada Street, Hamilton, ML3 0AA. 

Candidates and agents

A poll and count awareness session to provide candidates and agents with information regarding the polling and count arrangements, will take place on Wednesday 28 May 2025 at 5pm in Committee Room 2, Council Headquarters, Almada Street, Hamilton ML3 0AA and via Teams. If you are interested in attending, please email elections@southlanarkshire.gov.uk to request a meeting invitation.

More information and statutory notices 

• Statutory notices and information relating to this by-election 
• Boundary maps - enter your postcode to check or contact the Election Office for a hard copy
• Previous results – Scottish parliamentary results 

Useful websites

• www.gov.uk/scottish-parliament
• www.parliament.scot 
• https://boundaries.scot/
• www.electoralcommission.org.uk 

Contact us