How come we don't have to prove our identity to vote?

[user476t58]

I rocked up at my polling station after work without my polling card as I'd left it at home. I was just asked my address & given my voting paper. They weren't interested in seeing any ID. There's so much scope for cheating without any checks..

They do know if there is fraud. They tick you off on their list and if someone then turns up claiming to be that person then there is an issue.

As mentioned above, the people with no id do not tend to be Tory voters, so you can see why they’re introducing the need for id.

Well never mind voting - attending a and e should require ID.

im battling at the moment as a relative years ago have my details when attending for something that would have affected them - I only found out as applied for life insurance - I’ve basically been told there’s nothing I can do about it

🙄 they crossed your name off didn’t they?

You may have ID or an easy way to get it, you know who doesn’t? Poor and marginalised groups of people. But hey I guess they don’t deserve a vote.

@FreeTruman
They do know if there is fraud. They tick you off on their list and if someone then turns up claiming to be that person then there is an issue.

The issue with this is if the fraudster voted first, their vote gets counted and yours does not. In addition, they can only count fraud in cases like this where the fraudster is actually caught out. Most fraudsters will pick people who do not vote and pretend to be them. As the real person doesn’t vote, that fraud never gets caught, and whether this is widespread or not is entirely unknown. Althougg the 2014 electoral commission report does state that “3.1 While the data reported by the police shows that every UK police force has investigated cases of alleged or suspected electoral fraud in the last three years, it is clear that there are some areas where cases are more frequently reported and therefore investigated.”

There are no checks to see if someone’s voted for a person who did not vote. Obviously they can check and see if someone’s voted for a dead person, but that’s it. And voter turnout isn’t very high, is it?

I believe there are a few French residents on MN-how does it work over there? I think most people living in France have an ID card, don’t they?

Candidates don’t supply ID to stand for election and are convicted of election fraud twice as often as voters.

ID will be free. Being poor or marginalised is no barrier to voting.

What sort of ID is required for a voter card? When applying for photographic ID (driving licence/passport), I've always had to get it countersigned. So what happens if you cannot get anyone to do that? DH is retired, but not yet entitled to state pension. His driving licence is an ancient green paper one, he has no passport. Because he doesn't do any paid work, he no longer has access to anyone who would countersign for him. Our go no longer does this, even for a fee and the only 'suitable' people he could ask are actually family members.
Older people are more likely to have photographic ID as they will have a buss pass. Younger people have photos on their driving licences.

ID will be free. Being poor or marginalised is no barrier to voting.
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Sorry, the above is a quote but I can't bold it. But that's not true. What if you don't speak English well enough to apply? Or have learning disabilities or mental health issues that make the application process a challenge? Or have to go to the council in person and have to miss out on a day's wage to do so?

If they know there are 2 people registered to vote at an address, someone fraudulently using that address for a vote would have to chance that both people hadn't arrived at 7am to vote

Well, it would be fairly unlikely.
Whenever I've used the polling station, you can see which addresses haven't been crossed off. I could very easily go and say I was any one of my neighbours.
I always think it is amazing we don't have to show ID.
Even if it were just the voting card they send - presumably only other people that live with you could pretend to be you then, which narrows it down a lot, not just anyone who knows where you live. No-one would be disenfranchised then, as everyone entitled to vote gets a card.

Students are not permitted to vote at both addresses in the same election - it depends whether it's national/local etc. and they will only be on the register to vote in one place for each election.

It is permitted to be registered to vote in more than one location @MostTacticalNameChange . You can vote in local elections in both locations but you can only vote in national elections in one location. It is purely left to trust though... although, if you did vote twice and were caught, it is a criminal offence.

What about people who don’t speak English well?don’t have computers to apply online? Have disabilities that make the application process difficult? Are in controlling relationships? Maybe think outside your own privileged circumstances. It’s frankly insulting to say being marginalised isn’t a barrier.

Research shows voter fraud is vanishingly low and statistically negligible. If you’re the kind of person who cheats the system like that you’re likely not bothered about voting in the first place.

Why do we need that, its already been pointed out that voter fraud is very low?

When I was a student I was on the electoral register twice. I didn’t vote twice because it would have been wrong but I know people who did.

Given that the Tower Hamlets voter fraud guy is again standing for election again I am not sure I believe how seriously the issue is taken.

@Regularsizedrudy I believe you have to pass an English language test to apply for citizenship.

That doesn’t address your other very valid points though.

You have to show ID in the North of Ireland,I did today.

Do you not have electrol cards? I think when they come.canvassing you can arrange to get one if you don't have ID. Same way you can arrange your lift to the polling station!

You don't have to be a UK citizen to vote in UK elections.

I’ve also wondered this. My dh and I turned up without our card, gave our address, was crossed out on the list and given the papers. We could have been anyone.

If they want everyone to have ID they could issue photo id voter cards to every eligible adult, would need to be free of course.

Blair tried to bring in ID cards in the 90's. Reaction was general horror. What works perfectly well in most European countries is a civil liberty issue here. Uk will not go for it.

Shows what I know, I just assumed that you had to be!

Someone like me who isn’t currently resident in the UK could easily pretend to be someone else when visiting. I suppose there’s not enough instances of that happening for it to be an issue.

Not sure this is true re students. DD is registered both here at home and at her student house. A poll card always arrives here for her for every election both local and national, but she always votes at her student house address.

What evidence? How can you have evidence when there is no way to track it in the first place?

I always think that. My neighbours are very vocal about not voting. I always think I could easily pretend to be them (obviously I wouldn’t )