Will you be watching the results?

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

nanna8

The young woman who won for the Greens looked like the best and most sincere candidate by a country mile. Good for her. I would have voted for her.

You mean the woman who co shares two very expensive properties and a holiday home. Who is against air travel but has done more than her fair share! She certainly isn’t what she pretends to be.

Did you see her Urdu posters and videos? 😉 muslim shopkeepers were asked today what they thought about the Green Party’s policies like legalising drugs, allowing more migrants in etc and they had no idea that was what they were voting for.

Just saw something very funny on Instagram, I quote

“He should change his name from Matt Goodwin, to Matt Badloser”

Sorry it made me smile

Staff at polling stations should make sure that no family voting happens as it is against the law. Having said that, it's ridiculous to suggest that Reform has lost this election because thousands of Muslim women wanted to vote Reform but their extremist husbands instructed them to vote for a white woman instead - who represents a party led by a gay, Jewish man. It's utter nonsense.

Casdon

I think the Democracy volunteers who reported the cases, and the polling station staff in those affected all need to be interviewed to make sure that there is a case to answer.

I’ve just seen on channel 4 news that the Police will investigate and report back if there’s a case to answer.

Hopefully, unlike the USA our police and courts remain (relatively) balanced and unbiased on the whole.

Since 2014, according to several sources, there has been police presence at at least 100 polling stations due to fears of disruption of voting.

I think the Democracy volunteers who reported the cases, and the polling station staff in those affected all need to be interviewed to make sure that there is a case to answer.

Maremia

For such a well publicised election, the turn out was so low.

Turnouts have been low all over the place for a few years, complacency and apathy from voters, then they have the bare cheek to complain about those elected.

LemonJam

The presiding officer reported today the polling station staff and police officer observed no "family voting' concerns at any of the polling stations yesterday.

Oh? Who should we believe then?

I have never seen a police officer either inside or outside a polling station in all the many years I’ve been voting.

MayBee70

If anyone wants to know more about Polanski please listen to his interview on The Rest is Politics Leading. ( Farage refuses to be interviewed by them…)

Thank you. I will.

I have an acquaintance who says Restore have given her hope for the future . I despair. I think the electorate will home in on one or two policies that they relate to put forward by a party but do no research into the rest of their policies eg economic policy, defence etc.

Nobody seems to want to answer.

Restore Britain seem absolutely terrifying though. And not at all funny.

The presiding officer reported today the polling station staff and police officer observed no "family voting' concerns at any of the polling stations yesterday.

Runcorn and Helsby by-election, May 2025 was won by the Reform candidate by JUST SIX votes more than the 2nd place Labour candidate. Democracy Volunteers (DV) issued a post election report in 2025, just as today for Gorton and Denton highlighting some 'family voting' concerns. However Reform did not feel the need in 2025 to raise any concerns or make a complaint to the police about illegal "family voting" when it won seats in 2025.

Yet today Farage has raised a complaint with Greater Manchester police regarding "family voting" in Gorton and Denton- somewhat inconsistent. Farage issued a statement about the Green Party success today as "victory for sectarianism and CHEATING" today.

The Ballot Secrecy Act 2022- led to enhanced electoral protections - and a subsequent private members bill afforded presiding officers the legal right to tell family members they are NOT allowed to stand over other family members in polling stations. Also police officers are present in all polling stations, throughout the day observing voters alongside polling station staff. The police officers can step in and have power of arrest. Family voting is illegal and can carry a 6 month prison sentence.

The 2023 Secret Ballot Act made it illegal for 2 voters to collude or direct each other on voting. Family voting is where 2 voters from the same family collude or direct each other. DVs, working as a pair, visited a proportion of polling stations in Gorton and Denton yesterday for between 30 - 45 minutes so just a small snap shot sample overall. They reported today they observed 32 cases of "family voting" but none of the DVs raised any of these 32 concerns to polling station staff or the police officers at the time as they are required to do by the Electoral Commission. Neither has the DV organisation has made public the methodology it uses to complete its assessment to determine "colluding or directing" behaviour as set out in the secret Ballot Act. Ie are they recording an observation that families are arriving together, remaining in "close proximity", talking to each other immediately before the vote in a certain manner, entering polling booths with another family voting member or any other designated behaviour? Why is the methodology used not available?

It is right that every individuals vote is free and secret. It is right that all and any concerns are investigated, preferably in real time to prevent an offence taking place. It is important to distinguish between illegal behaviour and suspected collusion and directing behaviour. You would not have observation volunteers visit an NHS establishment and assess an unsafe/illegal practice has taken place but not escalate to staff in real time and instead report it the following day, after the event. The Polling staff and police officers are trained to deal with such things and the Electoral Commission rightly expects Democracy Volunteers to report concerns at the time. .

I look forward to the outcome of the police investigation.

Freya5

nanna8

The young woman who won for the Greens looked like the best and most sincere candidate by a country mile. Good for her. I would have voted for her.

That is so very funny.

What is so funny about this?

David49

This family voting needs sorting out because one person could oversee his/her whole families voting, not understanding English is not a disability.

In fact if they can't understand how can they decide how to vote, voting instructions should be provided in the persons language. Yes, thats a lot of work, do we want democracy or not.?

I had a look at the report posted by the Democracy Volunteers on their website last night.

Their definition of 'family voting' is 'where two voters ether confer, collude or direct each other on voting'. They say it breaches the 2023 Ballot Secrecy Act.

While I agree that directing someone how to vote is completely wrong, I cannot get too upset about conferring or colluding because I am sure that a number of voters do that as a matter of course. It's just that most wouldn't do it actually in the polling station...

As the organisation has been monitoring elections for a decade and say that they have never seen such high levels of 'family voting' I think there's a rabbit away somewhere, but it isn't the one Farage is chasing...

If anyone wants to know more about Polanski please listen to his interview on The Rest is Politics Leading. ( Farage refuses to be interviewed by them…)

Cossy

So I didn’t know too much about Polanski until recently.

I’ve known about Farage since his days as an MEP, I see his attendance records as both an MEP and MP, I own a holiday lodge in his constituency. I base my views of him as a “grifter” on years and years of his activities.

Out of interest, those of you labelling Polanski as coming from the same camp as Farage, why? I’ve not “judged” Farage on anything other than his behaviour since he entered politics and the “untruths” he’s been caught saying or doing.

They don't appear to come from the same camp as far as their policies are concerned. Poles apart, in fact. Not keen on either of them. The Greens may have won last night's by-election but one swallow does not make a summer.

GrannyGravy13

MayBee70

TerriBull

"I will always hold Farage responsible for Jo Cox's murder" A somewhat wide off the mark opinion.

With that in mind though who would you hold responsible for David Ames murder Maybee?

I wasn’t referring to that murder though. But to me there has been a lack of tolerance in this country that was engineered by Farage and it has turned it into a country I don’t recognise. I’ll always remember an Irish friend who’d worked all over the world saying that the English were the most tolerant people he had ever worked with.

Go back a couple of decades or more

Signs in boarding house windows

No Blacks, No Irish

Long before Reform and Nigel Farage…

Which is why I was surprised when he said it. Even so, when there were those signs everywhere I don’t think there was this open hatred of immigrants. I’ll never forget the horrible placards that were everywhere during the referendum because Farage et al had told us that we’d lost our country. Even this forum has had a different dynamic since then.

For such a well publicised election, the turn out was so low.

MayBee70

TerriBull

"I will always hold Farage responsible for Jo Cox's murder" A somewhat wide off the mark opinion.

With that in mind though who would you hold responsible for David Ames murder Maybee?

I wasn’t referring to that murder though. But to me there has been a lack of tolerance in this country that was engineered by Farage and it has turned it into a country I don’t recognise. I’ll always remember an Irish friend who’d worked all over the world saying that the English were the most tolerant people he had ever worked with.

Go back a couple of decades or more

Signs in boarding house windows

No Blacks, No Irish

Long before Reform and Nigel Farage…

TerriBull

"I will always hold Farage responsible for Jo Cox's murder" A somewhat wide off the mark opinion.

With that in mind though who would you hold responsible for David Ames murder Maybee?

I wasn’t referring to that murder though. But to me there has been a lack of tolerance in this country that was engineered by Farage and it has turned it into a country I don’t recognise. I’ll always remember an Irish friend who’d worked all over the world saying that the English were the most tolerant people he had ever worked with.

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

This family voting needs sorting out because one person could oversee his/her whole families voting, not understanding English is not a disability.

In fact if they can't understand how can they decide how to vote, voting instructions should be provided in the persons language. Yes, thats a lot of work, do we want democracy or not.?