Have you spoilt your ballot? A thread to indicate numbers

[Chrysanthemum5]

Hi all
I've just posted my vote. I live in a constituency where the incumbent has a big majority, and will win again. He is the only one people have posters up for, the only one really sending out leaflets etc everyone else has given up. He is Labour, and full on TWAW, insists there is no conflict with women's rights and refused to talk to me about this issue. The other candidates are the usual mix of Tory and Greens with a sprinkling of independents and Reform.

Politically speaking I am Labour, and always have been. But their attitude towards the rights of women is shocking. To be fair I grew up in a family heavily involved in unions so I always knew the unions were misogynistic but Labour seemed ok. Not any more.

If you have spoilt your ballot it would be interesting to know so that we can see (and maybe politicians can see) what women are thinking

Not in the polling station, but taking a picture of your paper in your own home isn't an offence. I'd not post online until after the election just to be on the safe side.

The side of the ballot paper with the candidates on is anonymous, but if you turn it over you will find that there is a unique number on it, bar code and QR code, along with your constituency and date of election

They aren't traceable to your name and address, just for fraud reasons. Your ballot paper was randomly allocated and posted to you in a generic envelope so the number isn't traceable to you. As long as you put your ballot paper and signature paper in the separate envelopes provided as per advice with the ballot.

However your social media is traceable if you put it online, and bear in mind that
there are offences relating to intimidation and bribery of voters and candidates or their agents. Sounds daft I know, but given there are people already frothing about spoiling a vote on here, there will be those in their Mum's spare room with nothing to do but police social media.

So no offering anyone a Tunnocks to put a sticker on their ballot, or some plonker will be making a complaint.😉

Woking are on the case! Working closely with Surrey Police - those bold defenders of Rights for Women. What could possibly go wrong?
https://www.woking.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/elections-and-voting/elections/electoral-fraud-and-offences

Every time I receive a flier from the SNP, Greens, Libdems and Labour, I shred it, put it in an envelope with a 'Respect My Sex' note and post it back to their offices. Unlike the SNP, I even pay for my own stamps. Not sure if they take notice but it makes me feel better!

@RantyRantington When you vote in person, there is a mechanism for linking you to your electoral choice.

When a ballot paper is issued it is torn from the book of counterfoils, endorsed and given to the voter. But the voter’s registration number is written on the counterfoil, which has the same serial number as the ballot. So a voter can be linked to a particular ballot paper.

The ballot papers and counterfoils are supposed to be stored separately and destroyed after a year.

Are you absolutely sure that the voter's registration number isn't written on the counterfoil of the ballot paper before it is posted out to you?

Further to the above, this is a paragraph from the instructions for Electoral Registration Officers.

"After an election, EROs are required to notify postal voters if their postal vote has been rejected as a result of failing the personal identifier checks and to inform them of the specific reason for the rejection."

https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/guidance-local-returning-officers-administering-a-police-and-crime-commissioner-election-england-and/absent-voting/receiving-and-opening-postal-votes/process-opening-postal-votes/preparing-a-record-those-postal-votes-have-failed-identifier-checks

So the ERO and their staff must be able to link a particular ballot paper with the voter, in order to notify them.

I was thinking about posting a thread along these lines a while back, but got worried it was a crime to influence voters or something!

I'm thinking a simple "woman = adult human female" if I spoil. Still deciding, as my preferred candidate isn't TWAW but is Labour (also isn't clearly against this nonsense either).

(I'm tempted to write in the Labour box, although remember an incident some years back where someone drew a penis in a specific box and it was eventually decided it counted as a vote for that candidate!)

I just wrote Labour have failed women next to the Labour candidates name but in normal pen as I hope it may encourage closer inspection. And yes I know from the many posts on here that it is likely to be ignored but I can live with that

If you make any mark that is not a cross neatly within the confines of the box it counts as a vote for the candidate, unless it gives information that could identify you as an individual.

So if you want to spoil your ballot - or render it invalid as the official term has it - write in a blank space or across the whole thing.

And yes, the penis thing - Glyn Davies in Montgomeryshire.

That may be counted as a vote. There are some examples online of spoilt votes and even a negative comment next to a candidate's name was counted as a vote.

Posted this previously on this (or another thread?)- so re-posting in case useful if considering spoiling your ballot:
www.votenone.org.uk/protest_votes_count.html

@Chersfrozenface The voting paper should be in a separate sealed envelope so if your ID form is invalid, then the vote envelope is set aside still unopened.

You are informed that your ID form was invalid without anyone seeing your vote as it's still sealed. All voting papers are kept as you say, including those unopened ones. But those should remain unread, to my knowledge. That's why there are different categories for invalid as mentioned earlier in the thread.

In theory, I suppose, someone could open both your ID form and your ballot paper at the same time, but my view is that may well fall under ballot tampering and potentially be a criminal offence. Possibly, under s.65 of the Representation of the People Act 1983

It's the ID ONLY that's checked, NOT what is in the separate sealed ballot envelope accompanying it.

I suppose if you got a letter saying that your vote was void for ID and you got in touch with them saying "I never sent in a postal ballot" then there would be a criminal investigation. I'm not sure what happens at that point. as I've no experience of it.

No system is a hundred per cent foolproof I know. If you are interested, here is what Rochdale's site says.
www.rochdale.gov.uk/elections-voting/postal-voting/3
"Postal voting safety and fraud
Voting by post is safe and proven cases of electoral fraud are rare.
When voting by post, you should mark your vote on the ballot paper in secret, and seal the envelope yourself.
Verifying your identity when you vote by post
When you apply for a postal or proxy vote, you'll be asked to give your date of birth and signature. When you return your postal voting pack, these details are checked to confirm your identity, which makes postal voting safe.
It’s important that you read the postal voting instructions carefully before you vote by post, and provide the right information in the right place.

Half of all postal ballots rejected at the last UK general election had a signature or date of birth that did not match that given in the initial application. One common mistake people make when voting by post is to provide the date of completion, rather than their date of birth.
Your signature and date of birth are separated from your ballot paper before its looked at or counted, so giving this information will not affect the secrecy of your vote."

That is BRILLIANT!😁

This is fabulous. Mine go to the compost bucket and the shiney ones into the recycling.

I spoiled. First time ever. I cannot vote for any party that cannot define 'woman'.

I spoiled my ballot, too, and wrote on it exactly why: that in 1924 millions of women were forbidden a political voice, and now, just 100 years' later, that very same group - more historically disenfranchised than any other group - has once again been told that it's undeserving of recognition as a distinct political demographic: "women" (I wrote the word quite a few times and circled it).

For anyone against the idea of spoiling ballots...

I can't bear to vote for parties I find so unethical and misogynistic they actively frighten me. To give them the slightest impression of my support for the havoc they're wreaking on my country and my rights is anathema to me. (I find it appalling that I'm in this position).

And also - I put so much more thought into this vote than I have any other in my life (and, kind of ironically, feel more invested in this election than any I have before).

Apathy this ain't, and my carefully written ballot paper shows that, regardless of who does or doesn't take the time to look.

Are people spoiling on Thursday making do with the supplied pencil, or sneaking in a Sharpie? 😃

Steady now. Wouldn't that come under "going equipped"?

Seriously though, one would be well advised to take one's own writing implements - discreetly, of course - and use a part of the polling screen not visible to the staff. In my experience, one would be hard put to it to write a short sentence with those stubby, blunt pencils, never mind anything more.

Three simple words will be scrawled across mine in black ink: 'ADULT HUMAN FEMALE'. Irrespective of the reasons why spoiled ballots are spoiled, they are counted.

It will be the first time since reaching adult eligibility for the vote that I've ever resorted to doing this.

I'm unable to endorse any of the options available, not even as a tactical vote. I'm genuinely politically homeless.

I can confirm that's the case, as I struggled with the local election spoiling for that reason!

I spoiled my postal vote. I wrote Respect my sex if you want my X. I also wrote I would have voted Labour if they had promised to implement CASS report in full and update Equality Act to mean biological sex only. But they didn’t. Marginal SNP / Labour seat here and every vote will count. I also drew a vertical line through all boxes to ensure it wouldn’t be counted. I’ve spoiled vote before because of this. This is a red line issue for me.

@Greensewingkit a red line for me too. Labour haven't given up on me yet though. They sent me another 3 leaflets in the post yesterday and another one was put through my door later. I've lost count of how many Labour leaflets have been delivered here but it must amount to a fair bit of a tree. Not had a single canvasser from any of the parties though.

I've had lots of leaflets from the various parties (seven listed) but nobody has knocked on the door. However all the leaflets say the same thing "vote for me, I will invest in this city by creating more jobs and building more houses. I have lived here x years and feel I'm the best candidate ". That's it. Nothing about how or where the money will come from. Nothing about that party's manifesto (or party leader). It feels more like a local one rather than a GE, very muted and hush hush, and I'm finding that unsettling tbh. EDIT - Scratch that, it feels more like a school governors vote 😯

Still haven't decided if I'm voting tory for the first time ever or spoiling my ballot. I don't really want to do either.

@PurpleSparkledPixie that's exactly how I feel.

It will be interesting to hear from those who have previously spoiled their ballots about what actually happened as a result.

Did they get a certificate, perhaps? Did the candidates rush round to plead with them to vote at the next election? Did all the parties soul-search over the spoiler's reasons (did they even know those reasons)?

Or did the election result carry on cheerfully without them, ignoring their protest and assigning their spoiled ballot straight in the bin?

None of the above!

Oh wow, is that what all the foolish disobedient creatures are expecting? That must be why they haven't placidly and dutifully accepted their menu of correct options.