Went to vote after work and right as I was walking up I realised I didn’t have my ID on me. Got turned away at the door. I decided to go home to get my passport but I was tempted not to bother. Also seemed that they didn’t keep track of people being turned away. I mentioned this when I went back to vote and they said you have to queue up to get it noted inside! Wondering what everyone else’s experiences were.
My polling booth didn’t really check my ID. I got my driving license out, he didn’t look and said “yeah ID’s fine”
Didn’t have any local elections in my area.
I think to some extent this is a solution without a problem. Lots of other countries require ID for in person voting because they always have done. There is no suggestion or proof of widespread *in person* voter fraud in the UK. I would like to see a bit more scrutiny and restriction on postal voting. The problem is… as seen in the US in 2020 it only takes a small amount of lack of faith in the process to cause issues and dissent. Surely we all want safe and secure elections?
So, they ignored all the information about what documents work, ignored the information again when it was sent to them with their polling card, ignored their ability to use postal vote, ignored the fact they can get a vote valid id sent to them for free…
But no, it’s discrimination, the stupidity of some people is astounding. They still had a right to vote, they were just too stupid and lazy to use it.
While I agree I hope they drop the need for ID I find it odd that if you are immunosuppressed why not register for postal vote. That’s what I did being clinically vulnerable rather than risk queuing up at a polling station
Good old voter suppression works in the tories favour. They allow bus passes for older folk but not for young people
There are many ways to get a free ID in the rare event you don’t already have several forms of acceptable ID already.
Seems like people desperate to make themselves victims at a pretty normal ask.
Will Voter ID be able to stop future lying fraudulent Governments from sitting in Westminster?
I think not.
Here come the clowns.
“I’ve never had any ID in my entire life” and “I can’t do the five minute walk home to get my ID” all around.
I bet you were the kids that forgot your PE kits every week
They should have soft launched it. No matter how many adverts I may have seen reminding me, I know there’s many people who wouldn’t have had a clue. A soft launch could have been essentially what they done this time with someone asking about ID at the door but instead of turning them away take them to a new line where they can learn how to get ID for next time. Take their details so they can get new info posted to them too.
The Electoral Commission statement this evening:
“We already know from our research that the ID requirement posed a greater challenge for some groups in society, and that some people were regrettably unable to vote today as a result.”
Voted with an expired passport with a teenage photo. But I live in an extremely safe Labour ward anyway so it doesn’t matter (also it’s mad that “tactical voting” has to be a thing. Well, maybe it makes more sense for local elections where you vote for individual councillors and not the party).
“One campaigner said they knew of about a dozen people being unable to vote in a single council area, with other reports saying older voters appeared often involved.”
This is why i never understood the idea it was a ploy by the Tories for vote suppression. To me older people are far less likely to have ID which only hurts them
My driving license is a little out of date so the address doesn’t match my current address (I know I should get it changed), because if that I wasn’t allowed to vote.
I don’t have a passport, systems a joke now they’ll be plenty in a similar situation that weren’t allowed to vote.
There have been more prime ministers in the last six months than instances of voter fraud in the last two decades.
Local elections have always been a strange one anyway. Vote for some busybody to organise your bin collection and keep parks tidy, and yet all their literature is about national policies? I honestly don’t get why councils are party affiliated
I moved back to Northern Ireland recently and over here ID has been required since 2002. In fact, getting a postal vote requires a secondary person to attest the application (which I was dismayed given the faff required in contrast to ticking an online form for GB).
Here the Electoral Identity Card is supplied for free as a form of photo ID. I remember when I was in 6th Form we had the Electoral Office come in and take photos for us to register for those cards. (which can be used as a legal form of ID for other purposes in NI, whereas that voter authroity certificate is just a little piece of paper with your photo on it)
I’ve been in England a few times these last few months and not noticed any awareness campaigns about voter ID though?
But then again, as per existing comments, trying to balance integrity of the vote vs encouraging max turnout is challenging. NI’s political landscape also impacted the requirement for photo ID, where politics was and still is rather tribal here.
Voter fraud is a complete non-issue, any additional barrier imposed on voting is going to lower turnout and disenfranchise people. We already know that things like bad weather lower turnout, so the extra hassle of having to bring ID with you is going to do the same
I’m far more concerned about election fraud, which voter disenfranchisement is just one part. I doubt the government will do anything about that, seeing as how they benefit from it.
Since there are so many fans of the way Europe does things with voter ID, how about we also follow them by having a more democratic voting system like some form of PR?
I was watching Narcos last night and there was a quote in it that explained this sort of situation so simply.
“It’s called voter suppression. Make it easier for those who’s vote you can count on. Make it harder for those you can’t. That’s how you rig an election, without leaving a lick of evidence.”
ID check and voting were two separate events. I could’ve walked in shown my ID and then said I was somebody completely different whilst at the desk.
How’s this even supposed to solve the voter fraud “issue”?
I wonder how many people this has impacted based on their political affiliation.
If it’s mainly impacted Tory voters, I can see them rescinding voter ID rules. If Voter ID is the reason we didn’t see a total Conservative wipeout today, perhaps they’ll keep it in place.
22 comments
Went to vote after work and right as I was walking up I realised I didn’t have my ID on me. Got turned away at the door. I decided to go home to get my passport but I was tempted not to bother. Also seemed that they didn’t keep track of people being turned away. I mentioned this when I went back to vote and they said you have to queue up to get it noted inside! Wondering what everyone else’s experiences were.
My polling booth didn’t really check my ID. I got my driving license out, he didn’t look and said “yeah ID’s fine”
Didn’t have any local elections in my area.
I think to some extent this is a solution without a problem. Lots of other countries require ID for in person voting because they always have done. There is no suggestion or proof of widespread *in person* voter fraud in the UK. I would like to see a bit more scrutiny and restriction on postal voting. The problem is… as seen in the US in 2020 it only takes a small amount of lack of faith in the process to cause issues and dissent. Surely we all want safe and secure elections?
So, they ignored all the information about what documents work, ignored the information again when it was sent to them with their polling card, ignored their ability to use postal vote, ignored the fact they can get a vote valid id sent to them for free…
But no, it’s discrimination, the stupidity of some people is astounding. They still had a right to vote, they were just too stupid and lazy to use it.
While I agree I hope they drop the need for ID I find it odd that if you are immunosuppressed why not register for postal vote. That’s what I did being clinically vulnerable rather than risk queuing up at a polling station
Good old voter suppression works in the tories favour. They allow bus passes for older folk but not for young people
There are many ways to get a free ID in the rare event you don’t already have several forms of acceptable ID already.
Seems like people desperate to make themselves victims at a pretty normal ask.
Will Voter ID be able to stop future lying fraudulent Governments from sitting in Westminster?
I think not.
Here come the clowns.
“I’ve never had any ID in my entire life” and “I can’t do the five minute walk home to get my ID” all around.
I bet you were the kids that forgot your PE kits every week
They should have soft launched it. No matter how many adverts I may have seen reminding me, I know there’s many people who wouldn’t have had a clue. A soft launch could have been essentially what they done this time with someone asking about ID at the door but instead of turning them away take them to a new line where they can learn how to get ID for next time. Take their details so they can get new info posted to them too.
The Electoral Commission statement this evening:
“We already know from our research that the ID requirement posed a greater challenge for some groups in society, and that some people were regrettably unable to vote today as a result.”
– https://twitter.com/lewis_goodall/status/1654235318009094145
Voted with an expired passport with a teenage photo. But I live in an extremely safe Labour ward anyway so it doesn’t matter (also it’s mad that “tactical voting” has to be a thing. Well, maybe it makes more sense for local elections where you vote for individual councillors and not the party).
“One campaigner said they knew of about a dozen people being unable to vote in a single council area, with other reports saying older voters appeared often involved.”
This is why i never understood the idea it was a ploy by the Tories for vote suppression. To me older people are far less likely to have ID which only hurts them
My driving license is a little out of date so the address doesn’t match my current address (I know I should get it changed), because if that I wasn’t allowed to vote.
I don’t have a passport, systems a joke now they’ll be plenty in a similar situation that weren’t allowed to vote.
Here’s a list of 21 pieces of ID you can use.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/the-21-acceptable-forms-of-voter-id-you-can-bring-to-the-polling-station-for-local-elections/ar-AA1aHZbw
There have been more prime ministers in the last six months than instances of voter fraud in the last two decades.
Local elections have always been a strange one anyway. Vote for some busybody to organise your bin collection and keep parks tidy, and yet all their literature is about national policies? I honestly don’t get why councils are party affiliated
I moved back to Northern Ireland recently and over here ID has been required since 2002. In fact, getting a postal vote requires a secondary person to attest the application (which I was dismayed given the faff required in contrast to ticking an online form for GB).
Here the Electoral Identity Card is supplied for free as a form of photo ID. I remember when I was in 6th Form we had the Electoral Office come in and take photos for us to register for those cards. (which can be used as a legal form of ID for other purposes in NI, whereas that voter authroity certificate is just a little piece of paper with your photo on it)
I’ve been in England a few times these last few months and not noticed any awareness campaigns about voter ID though?
But then again, as per existing comments, trying to balance integrity of the vote vs encouraging max turnout is challenging. NI’s political landscape also impacted the requirement for photo ID, where politics was and still is rather tribal here.
Voter fraud is a complete non-issue, any additional barrier imposed on voting is going to lower turnout and disenfranchise people. We already know that things like bad weather lower turnout, so the extra hassle of having to bring ID with you is going to do the same
I’m far more concerned about election fraud, which voter disenfranchisement is just one part. I doubt the government will do anything about that, seeing as how they benefit from it.
Since there are so many fans of the way Europe does things with voter ID, how about we also follow them by having a more democratic voting system like some form of PR?
I was watching Narcos last night and there was a quote in it that explained this sort of situation so simply.
“It’s called voter suppression. Make it easier for those who’s vote you can count on. Make it harder for those you can’t. That’s how you rig an election, without leaving a lick of evidence.”
ID check and voting were two separate events. I could’ve walked in shown my ID and then said I was somebody completely different whilst at the desk.
How’s this even supposed to solve the voter fraud “issue”?
I wonder how many people this has impacted based on their political affiliation.
If it’s mainly impacted Tory voters, I can see them rescinding voter ID rules. If Voter ID is the reason we didn’t see a total Conservative wipeout today, perhaps they’ll keep it in place.