A CONSERVATIVE activist from Hampshire has been found guilty of voting fraud.
John Hall was fined £1,000 for one count of using a false instrument with intent, but cleared of six further charges.
The 67-yearold former parish councillor, of Coriander Way, Whiteley, falsified proxy voting forms during the 2007 Winchester City Council elections.
Guildford Crown Court heard there was intense rivalry between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats in the Whiteley ward where just a handful of votes could change control of the seat.
Hall had previously told police that he had “acted with naivety”.
He was arrested by police ten days before the 2007 vote.
At the election for Winchester City Council, the Conservatives retained power with 29 seats ahead of the Liberal Democrat with 23 seats, four independents and one Labour representative.
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