Tories could be saved in next election as five million voters to be turned away

Rishi Sunak Launches Expansion Of Community Diagnostic Health Checks

Confusion over voter ID laws could end up saving Rishi Sunak at the election. There have been fears that up to eleven serving cabinet ministers and several senior Tory figures could lose their seats in what would be a humiliating loss for the Tories.

However, a new poll, carried out by Survation for Best for Britain, found that high-profile Conservatives, including Jeremy Hunt and Suella Braverman, could save their seats if enough voters are blocked from the ballot box.

The new report found that around five million Britons could be turned away from polling booths at the next general election due to confusion over the voter ID laws.

In 2022, the government passed a law requiring Britons to show photo ID to vote, claiming it was needed to prevent electoral fraud. The new rule accepts any one of 22 forms of ID, including passports, several types of bus passes, driving licenses, and biometric immigration documents.

However, a lack of awareness of the law resulted in more than 14,000 voters being turned away from polling booths in the 2023 local elections. If that was repeated at the general election, it could prove “decisive,” according to Best for Britain.

SUELLA

In Rishi Sunak’s seat of Richmond and Northallerton, where the PM holds a thin poll lead of 2.4 percent, an estimated 9,800 voters are unaware of the need to show voter ID, according to the unprecedented analysis.

Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove, Suella Braverman, and Priti Patel could also be saved as between 7,000 to 9,000 people in their seats are unsure of the need for photo ID.

Best for Britain’s chief executive Naomi Smith said: “While polls suggest it won’t be enough to change the result of the next general election, the introduction of unnecessary photo ID could be the difference between victory and defeat for high profile Conservatives in marginal constituencies.”

VOTER ID LAW

The new poll, which surveyed 15,000 people, showed that 16 percent of respondents did not know they would need ID to vote.

If that figure was repeated nationwide, the campaign group said that around five million Britons would be turned away from polling booths. Around 1.85 million people in crucial marginal seats would be unaware of voter ID rules.

The lack of awareness is highest among young people, with more than one in four (27 percent) of 18-24-year-olds unaware of the voter ID law.

Traditional Tory voters are the most likely to know about the law, with 94 percent of over-65s and 95 percent of retirees clued up.

UK election

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said it would “work closely with local authorities and other partners to raise awareness” about voter ID requirements.

A spokesperson added: “As recommended by international election watchdogs, we introduced a requirement to show photographic identification for voting in person across Great Britain, in line with the longstanding arrangements in Northern Ireland.

“We are committed to ensuring everyone can have their say in our democracy, and the Electoral Commission will continue to conduct public awareness campaigns ahead of each set of relevant polls.

“The vast majority of voters in the polling station – 99.75 percent – cast their vote successfully at the local elections in England last May.”