Election Observers Report Record 'Family Voting' in Manchester Byelection
An election observer group has raised significant concerns over breaches of the secret ballot during the Gorton and Denton byelection in Manchester. Democracy Volunteers, an organisation founded by Dr John Ault and supported by Conservative peer Prof Robert Haywood, deployed four accredited observers across the constituency.
High Levels of Observed Collusion
The team attended 22 of the 45 polling stations while polls were open, spending between 30 and 45 minutes at each location. They reported observing what they termed 'family voting', where individuals appeared to collude on votes, potentially violating secret ballot rules. In total, they witnessed 32 cases of this practice, with nine instances occurring at a single polling station.
Based on a sample of 545 voters, Democracy Volunteers estimated that 12% of those observed were either directing or affected by family voting. Dr John Ault, director of the group, stated, 'Today we have seen concerningly high levels of family voting in Gorton and Denton. This is the highest we have recorded in our 10-year history of observing UK elections.'
Comparison to Other Elections
Ault highlighted a stark contrast with other recent byelections. In the Runcorn and Helsby byelection, family voting was observed in only 12% of polling stations, affecting 1% of voters. In contrast, the Gorton and Denton byelection saw family voting in 68% of polling stations visited, impacting 12% of observed voters.
The group noted that while the Ballot Secrecy Act of 2023 clarified family voting as a breach, signage discouraging the practice was only present in 45% of the polling stations they monitored.
Additional Observations and Council Response
Democracy Volunteers also reported other issues, including voters taking photographs of their ballot papers and one instance where a person was authorised to vote despite already being marked as having voted earlier. However, they observed that voters turned away were primarily due to not being registered for Westminster elections, such as EU citizens eligible only for local votes.
Manchester City Council responded by stating that polling station staff were trained to detect voter interference and that no concerns had been reported during polling hours. A spokesperson for the acting returning officer expressed disappointment, saying, 'If Democracy Volunteers were so concerned, they should have raised issues immediately for action. We operated a hub with police presence to address any problems swiftly.'
The group's findings have sparked debate over election integrity and the enforcement of secret ballot regulations in UK byelections.
