The Conservatives have pledged to impose mandatory voter ID. Here's why it's a bad idea that will undermine - not strengthen - our democracy electoral-reform.org.uk/campaigns/upgr…
The Windrush scandal showed what can happen when millions of people who lack ID are shut out by government
Electoral Commission research has shown that 3.5 million citizens in the UK do not have access to photo ID, and 11 million citizens do not have a passport or driving licence
Black and mixed communities far less likely to possess photo ID than other groups
May's compulsory voter ID trials saw more than 700 people denied a vote across just 10 councils for not having ID.
We could see voters excluded on an industrial scale if mandatory photo ID were rolled out nationally
We could see voters excluded on an industrial scale if mandatory photo ID were rolled out nationally
Given there were just eight allegations of 'personation' fraud in the whole of 2018, these proposals are heavy handed and completely out of proportion. They're a sledgehammer to crack a nut
Perhaps the most galling thing about the dangerous voter ID plans is that there are genuine threats to our democracy in the UK that remain unaddressed - from 'dark ads', disinformation and foreign donations, to 9m people missing from the electoral register
The Conservatives have pledged to 'prevent any foreign interference in elections'. We've pointed to over dozen major loopholes that make elections vulnerable to wrongdoing - @alexGspence buzzfeed.com/alexspence/gen…
Millions can be pumped into campaign groups, including from foreign donors, outside of the regulated campaign period, without funding transparency. The next government could deal with this, rather than putting the burden on innocent voters through mandatory ID
It is time to go after the big players, not millions of ordinary voters. The voter ID plans are set to leave tens of thousands of legitimate voters voiceless and will hit some groups much harder than others
Parties should focus on combating the real threats to our democracy, rather than suppressing voters’ rights
Sign our petition opposing the dangerous and undemocratic voter ID plans action.electoral-reform.org.uk/page/35710/pet…
