Voter ID rules present problems for general election

The Electoral Commission has warned that hundreds of thousands of people could be excluded from voting in a UK general election due to new voter ID laws.

The election watchdog warned that the laws will have a disproportionate effect on poorer people, those with disabilities and people from minority ethnic backgrounds.

The Commission urged ministers to take urgent action to alleviate these impact - by drawing a wider list of documents that people can show to vote and allowing people without ID to have someone else vouch for their identity.

Local Government Information Unit (LGIU) has also warned that voter ID could cause serious disruption to the general election - the first general election to be affected by the rules.

The LGIU has warned that electoral administrators will not have enough staff to implement the new rules without more funding.

Responding to the reports, Cllr Shaun Davies, chair of the Local Government Association said: “Councils rose to the challenge of delivering new Voter ID requirements smoothly and this is a testament to the hard work of local election teams across the country.

“It is of concern to councils and their returning officers that a number of people were not aware of ID changes and left unable to vote, particularly those living with disabilities. This is a fundamental part of the democratic process and so it is important that the Government takes on board recommendations from this report to broaden out the ID documents that can be accepted by polling staff.

“Council election teams are often small and so were reliant on help from areas without local elections to administer these changes last May. It is clear that as we approach future elections that this will not be sustainable, particularly in a general election.

“Councils will need support from government to recruit additional staff so they can manage increased demand. As well as this, there needs to be a centrally funded campaign to ensure as many voters as possible are aware of voter ID requirements ahead of a general election.”

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