Voter ID rules denied at least 14,000 people the chance to vote

New data from the Electoral Commission shows that at least 14,000 were turned away at the recent local elections because they didn’t show an accepted form of voter ID. These stats are shocking but not unexpected.

Before the election, Good Law Project warned that these rules could result in people from marginalised groups being denied a voice in our democracy. Today’s report shows some evidence that certain groups of people were more likely to be turned away than others, with both ethnicity and unemployment being highlighted in the data.
Protect our voting rights

Everybody deserves the right to a fair vote. We launched a legal campaign ahead of the local elections on the 4th of May 2023 to challenge the new voter ID rules because we feared these new rules would discriminate against some voters more than others. Sadly, today’s report demonstrates we were right to be concerned.

The Electoral Commission will release further information towards the end of summer, giving a more detailed picture about what happened at the polls. We are currently gathering evidence for our case. If you got turned away at the polling station, please contact us. You can donate to this case below.
Donate to our voter ID campaign