Jeremy Corbyn slams the Tories for trying to rig election results with voter ID checks

Corbyn and polling station
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The government recently announced plans to introduce ID checks at polling stations ahead of the next general election. The move is said to be an attempt to “safeguard against electoral fraud”.

However, only allowing people with photo ID to vote will have a massive impact. It may well block the poorest and most vulnerable people from voting.

Voter suppression and election rigging

The number of people likely to be affected is staggering. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said it could affect over 11 million people. He also called it a “blatant attempt” for the Tories to rig election results:

Labour’s Cat Smith echoed Corbyn’s words:

And other people also agreed:

London mayor Sadiq Khan called this move “voter suppression”:

Not only is voter fraud statistically a negligible issue, the implementation of ID checks will disproportionately affect non-Tory voters the most:

Vulnerable groups hit hardest

Poor people, disabled people, ethnic minorities, trans people, young people and the elderly – all are likely to be disenfranchised as a result of voter ID checks:

Free IDs and postal vote

Some people have called for free IDs to be made available for everyone, so that photo ID won’t become a barrier to voting:

Moreover, registering for a postal vote is an accessible way to vote without having to present ID:

A move like this, which would disenfranchise millions of the poorest, most vulnerable voters in the country, only epitomises this Conservative government’s track record. Luckily, the motivations behind this cynical attempt at tackling electoral fraud are plain for a lot of people to see.

Featured image via Fréa Lockley and Wikimedia/ Alex Lee

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