Do nursing home residents use the right to vote?

This paper describes the results of a postal survey of the level of participation in the local government elections of May 1994 by residents of nursing homes. This group was found to have much lower levels of participation than those living in the community. Factors that were identified as contributing to the level of participation included: a relatively low rate or registration, impaired decision-making abilities of some residents, availability of postal voting and the expectations of nursing staff.