Enable the Vote

Enable the Vote 2026 

Download Electoral Commission Easy Read Voting Guide 

Our Enable the Vote campaign has been running across Scotland over the election period to support people with learning disabilities to take part in the Scottish Parliament election.

In partnership with the Electoral Commission, we held 8 voter information workshops in communities across Scotland and spoke to more than 180 people about voting, elections, and having their voice heard.

The campaign shared accessible and Easy Read information to help people understand how voting works, what to expect at a polling station, and why taking part in democracy matters.

Anyone needing additional support can also contact Enable Direct on 0300 0200 101.

Enable the Vote aims to:

· Support people with learning disabilities to participate in the Scottish Election through providing accessible information and guidance on the voting process

· Provide information to people with learning disabilities on the election through organising information and engagement events

Enable the Vote fulfils an important purpose because only around 30% of people with a learning disability vote in elections compared to the 67.3% of the general population who voted in the 2019 UK General Election.

Along with research into comparatively low participation by people with learning disabilities in elections in the UK (Emerson and Hatton 2008) international research corroborates a lower level of participation in elections by people with learning disabilities - in the Swedish elections of 1994 and 1998, between 80% and 86% of the general population voted compared to 20% and 31% of people with intellectual disabilities respectively (Umb-Carlsson & Sonnander 2005; Kjellberg 2002).

Despite this current low level of participation, research by Mencap published in 2014 indicated that 70% of people with a learning disability want to vote.