A careful examination of the fundamentals of electromagnetic theory showsthat due to the underlying mathematical assumptions required for Stokes’ Theorem,global charge conservation cannot be guaranteed in topologically non-trivial space-times. However, in order to break the charge conservation mechanism we must alsoallow the electromagnetic excitation fieldsD,Hto possess a gauge freedom, just asthe electromagnetic scalar and vector potentialsφandAdo. This has implicationsfor the treatment of electromagnetism in spacetimes where black holes both form andthen evaporate, as well as extending the possibilities for treating vacuum polarisation.Using this gauge freedom ofD,Hwe also propose an alternative to the acceptednotion that a charge passing through a wormhole necessarily leads to an additional(effective) charge on the wormhole’s mouth.