United Kingdom - September 2023

A report by the Electoral Commission has found that voter ID requirements introduced in April 2022 prevented 14,000 people from voting in the May 2023 local elections. Particularly high hurdles to voting are faced by voters with disabilities, unemployed voters, people belonging to low-income groups, and ethnic minority voters. The requirements can also disadvantage younger groups where, for instance, the approved forms of identification disproportionately include types of ID usually held by older generations. In practice, this will mean the disenfranchisement of hundreds of thousands of voters. Recommendations by the Electoral Commission include a review of the list of accepted IDs and the improvement of access to Voter Authority Certificates, an alternative form of identification. The government has indicated that it is considering expanding the list of accepted IDs.

Sources: Electoral Commission, International IDEA, Reuters, Guardian (1), Guardian (2)