Ministers urged to expand ID people can use to vote with

This is after the elections watchdog found that as many as 750,000 people might not have voted in the 2024 general election because they lacked the necessary documents.

It has conducted a study into the voter ID laws, which were introduced under the Conservative government in 2022 and used for a national election for the first time this year.

They discovered that an estimated 16,000 voters were turned away from polling stations for lacking ID and did not return, 0.08% of the total number of people who voted, The Guardian reports.

We’ve published our report on voter ID at the 2024 UK general election. This was the first time that all voters across the UK were required to show an accepted form of photo ID at polling stations for a general election.

🧵 Our research found:

— Electoral Commission (@ElectoralCommUK) September 10, 2024

However, when polling carried out for the research asked people who did not try to vote at all their reason why, 4% said it was because they lacked ID. When the polling included a prompted list of reasons, it rose to 10%.

The Guardian adds: "Given the 60% turnout of Great Britain’s registered electorate of about 47 million people, even 4% of those who did not try to vote because of the ID rules would amount to about 750,000 denied a vote. The study excluded Northern Ireland because it has had its own voter ID laws since 1985."

While the report noted that the 2024 election turnout of 59.8% was the lowest since 2001, it said it was impossible to accurately say whether this was linked to the new rules.

How should voter ID be expanded?

In its report, the Electoral Commission said it should also include the Oyster photocard for students aged 18-plus in London, as well as the nationally used Jobcentre Plus Travel Discount card and the Veterans card.

It also said ministers should consider a system whereby someone lacking the documents to vote could have someone else attest to who they were.

In an attempt to help people without ID, people were able to apply for a free form of ID called a voter authority certificate. However, the report found that while 210,000 people applied for them, just 26,000 were used at the general election.

The report suggests that the paper document should also be offered digitally to encourage take-up.

Vijay Rangarajan, the Electoral Commission’s chief executive, said: “This was the first time all voters across the UK were required to show photographic ID at a general election, and the data shows almost everyone was able to do so successfully.

"However, our research shows that the need for ID discouraged some people from voting – and we don’t want to see any voters lose their say.

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“The commission will review how our public campaigns and other work can continue to support the effective implementation of voter ID and minimise the barriers to voting.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, which deals with electoral issues, said: “The government is committed to strengthening our democracy and making sure every legitimate voter can exercise their democratic right to vote.

"The government will carefully consider the report as part of our thorough evaluation of voter ID rules, to understand how they impacted voters, before bringing forward proposals in due course.”