29 Oct 2009
A report by the Electoral Commission – the independent elections watchdog – says that the Norwich North Parliamentary by-election this July, which saw Conservative candidate Chloe Smith elected as the newest Member of Parliament, ran smoothly despite a number of challenges.
Phillippa Saray, Regional Manager of the Electoral Commission’s Eastern and South East England office, said: “Electoral administrators in the constituency faced a number of challenges: Parliamentary by-elections take place on a much shorter timetable than the recent European Parliamentary elections; there were twelve candidates contesting the election and there were technical challenges due to the constituency straddling two local authorities.
“But with the attention of the country’s media focused on Norwich North for a few days this summer – there were over 100 local, national and international media representatives at the count – the election itself went smoothly and without incident.”
The (Acting) Returning Officer decided that the counting of votes should take place the day after the election. The Electoral Commission report notes that the (Acting) Returning Officer made this decision to allow him to make advance preparations for the count itself – including the verification of postal votes.
Although Returning Officers are only required to check 20% of postal vote statements – a security check to help prevent electoral fraud – 100 percent of these statements were checked in the Norwich North by-election, something the Commission recommends as good practice for all elections.
The Electoral Commission’s report of the by-election can be found on our website: : www.electoralcommission.org.uk/publications-and-research/election-reports
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Notes to editors
1. The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. Our aim is integrity and public confidence in the UK’s democratic process. We regulate party and election finance and set standards for well-run elections.
2. The Electoral Commission was given the discretion to report on the administration of by-elections to the UK Parliament by the Electoral Administration Act 2006 (EAA). This report on the Norwich North UK Parliamentary by-election that took place on 23 July 2009, is the fourth such report.
