3 hours ago
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Reform UK and the Conservatives have asked the elections watchdog to investigate allegations of corrupt voting in the Gorton and Denton byelection as Nigel Farage claimed there had been “cheating”, despite limited evidence of wrongdoing.
The reports to the Electoral Commission come after an election observers group, Democracy Volunteers, said they had witnessed “concerningly high levels” of so-called family voting, where one family member dictates how others cast their ballot.
One previous election observer for the group said it would be important to know the methodology behind the group’s claim that 12% of observed voters were involved in family voting, given that there was a “grey line” as to what precisely that meant.
The group’s report, published as soon as the polls closed on Thursday night, has given impetus to claims by defeated parties of wrongdoing, with Farage part-echoing Donald Trump’s complaints about stolen elections by saying his party was the victim of “sectarian voting and cheating”.
Reform’s chair, David Bull, said later this did not mean the outcome of the election had been changed.
In a subsequent video post, however, Farage indicated that he thought it did, calling the result “a victory for cheating in elections”.
Farage later said he had contacted police and the Electoral Commission about the allegations of family voting: “What was witnessed yesterday is deeply concerning and raises serious questions about the integrity of the democratic process in predominantly Muslim areas.
“If this is what was happening at polling stations, just imagine the potential for coercion with postal votes.”
James Cleverly, the Conservatives’ shadow communities secretary, announced that he had done the same. Citing the Democracy Volunteers report, he said: “This is clear evidence that electoral offences were committed, and a blind eye was turned to corruption and criminal activity.”
In her own response to the Gorton and Denton result, which saw the Conservatives finish fourth with just over 700 votes, Kemi Badenoch, the Tory party leader, blamed Labour, the Greens and Reform for “grievance politics”.
She wrote: “If you stir up grievance politics between groups based on religion or race, as Labour have done for decades, as Reform are seeking to do, and as the Greens have done successfully in this byelection, you are pitting neighbours against each other and you start to unravel the culture of tolerance that makes Britain great.”
After Democracy Volunteers raised concerns over family voting, Manchester city council said no issues had been reported and that it was “extremely disappointing” that the group had waited until after the polls closed to make the claims.
The Electoral Commission said observers were expected to raise irregularities or incidents of potential fraud at the polls “on the spot”.
However, John Ault, director of Democracy Volunteers, said it was “a normal international standard not to issue a comment until after voting has finished”.
A previous election observer for the group said that those in the role were actively told not to report any concerns on the day, and that family voting was something they were told to look out for.
During their time volunteering, the person said: “I saw one example but it was a family member helping their elderly relative into the booth, so this is where the grey line is as what actually is family voting.”
“I’d be interested in their methodology of what constitutes family voting, as the example above makes me wonder what is being reported,” they added.
