Summary

  • Conservatives have Commons majority of 12

  • David Cameron promises his party will 'govern as a party of one nation'

  • Ed Miliband quits as Labour leader. Ed Balls loses seat

  • Labour crushed in Scotland, with SNP winning 56 of 59 seats

  • Lib Dems routed, big names ousted - Clegg holds seat but resigns as leader

  • UKIP gets 13% of vote but Nigel Farage quits as leader after missing out on seat

  1. UUP leader has votedpublished at 16:09

    The Ulster Unionist Party leader, Mike Nesbitt has cast his vote in Gilnahirk in the east of Belfast. Mr Nesbitt isn't standing for election to Westminster. He's a member of the Northern Ireland assembly

  2. The calm before the stormpublished at 15:45

    Norman Smith
    Assistant political editor

    It's been a frenetic month for the BBC's political journalists. Now, on polling day - with the BBC unable to report any political news - there's a brief period of respite.

    The BBC's assistant political editor, Norman Smith says: "I will spend Thursday slumped in a deckchair in the garden (hopefully in the sunshine) swotting up on seats and key contests to watch. Exam revision sort of thing. Then early evening Family Smith will head off to vote."

    "I’ll watch the top of the Ten o’clock News then go to bed for three or four hours."

    Norman will be at work at 0330 and broadcasting on Radio 4 from 0500.

  3. How many voters?published at 15:35

    The BBC's head of statistics, Anthony Reuben, has been crunching the numbers on voter registration. A new system - individual voter registration - has been introduced. It replaces the old system where the "head of the household" registered everyone living at the property. Fears about people "falling off" the register prompted a big drive to get people to put their names down. The Electoral Commission estimates that there are now about 49 million people registered

  4. Smallest station?published at 15:22

    Polling station in a caravanImage source, Mid Suffolk Council

    As polling stations go, they don't get much smaller than this caravan parked in the Suffolk village of Kenton. Clerk Simon Stoner waits for voters.

  5. Political battlegroundpublished at 15:11

    Tank outside Greenwich polling stationImage source, Lori Smith

    Voters have been braving the polling station at the Greenwich Heritage Centre at the Royal Arsenal in Woolwich - despite the tank.

  6. You can't be too careful...published at 15:04

    Children's artwork could 'influence voters'

  7. Helpline for voters with learning disabilitiespublished at 14:54

    For the first time, there's be a dedicated helpline for anyone with a learning disability who has questions about voting or experiences any difficulties. Research by the learning disability charity Mencap shows that 60% of people, external with learning disabilities didn't register to vote for the 2010 election because they found it too difficult to do so. So for this election, the charity has set up a helpline. The number is 020 7696 5588.

  8. Over at Downing Street ...published at 14:41

    Larry Downing Street catImage source, PA

    Awaiting news of the election results - Larry the Downing Street cat is moved from his step by a police sniffer dog.

  9. SDLP leader casts his votepublished at 14:27

    SDLP leader Alasdair McDonnell and familyImage source, PA

    In Northern Ireland, the SDLP leader Alasdair McDonnell went to the polling station, at St Bride's primary school in Belfast with his wife Olivia and daughter Aileen.

  10. BBC gets readypublished at 14:18

    BBC election studio

    There won't be any election news on the BBC until the polls close at 2200 BST tonight. The BBC TV's election night programme, which starts at 21:55 BST, will be fronted by David Dimbleby. The programme will start with the results of a joint BBC, ITV and Sky exit poll. There'll be live coverage from 220 counts.

  11. Leaders votingpublished at 14:04

    Did you miss the party leaders casting their votes earlier? Here's a quick video round-up of the morning's footage

  12. More patient petspublished at 13:57

    Judith Preston and her lamb, BethImage source, PA

    There are lots of photographs doing the rounds of dogs patiently waiting for their owners outside polling stations. Judith Preston here, in Doncaster, chose to take her lamb Beth with her instead.

  13. Sheffield gears uppublished at 13:45

    An army of election officials across Britain are gearing up for a long and busy night. Sheffield City Council, for example, is hoping to avoid a repeat of 2010 when latecomers to polling stations were turned away. This time around there are more polling stations and there's been more training for staff. All the ballot boxes for Sheffield's six constituencies will be taken to the city's English Institute of Sport. The council has employed plenty of ballot counters, many of whom are used to "accounting under pressure" - such as former bank workers. Everyone present at the count will have been security vetted.

  14. Poll trackerpublished at 13:32

    No new opinion polls can be published on election day. But you can explore our poll tracker to see how the parties have fared across the whole of the current parliament – and how close the most recent polls have been.

    Poll of polls
  15. Who can build a majority?published at 13:22

    What if no-one wins the election? Who gets first chance to form the government in a hung parliament? What is the difference between a coalition and confidence and supply? Find out more and try your hand at building a majority in our election game.

    Parliament game
  16. No barrierspublished at 13:09

    Wheelchair access to polling stationImage source, Thinkstock

    There should be nothing to stop people with disabilities casting their votes today, the Electoral Commission says. Returning officers have been told to ensure that voting is accessible to all and that polling station staff have been trained on how to help voters with disabilities. Anyone with queries about voting can call the public information line on 0333 103 1928.

  17. DUP leader votespublished at 13:01

    Peter RobinsonImage source, AP

    In Belfast, the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party Peter Robinson has cast his vote at a polling station in Dundonald Elim Church. Mr Robinson isn't standing for a seat at Westminster. He is First Minister of Northern Ireland.

  18. Trotting out to votepublished at 12:54

    Horses going to the polling stationImage source, Getty

    One voter arrives in style at a polling station in Bramshill, Hampshire. The station is actually someone's house.

  19. Don't leave it too latepublished at 12:41

    The polling booths are open from 7am until 10pm. But the Electoral Commission is urging the 50 million people eligible to vote not to leave it to the last minute. There were angry scenes at some polling stations in the 2010 general election when some voters were turned away.

    The law was changed in 2013 to clarify the rules. So anyone who arrives at the polling station before 10pm - and is still waiting to vote at 10pm - is allowed to vote.