The Electoral Commission has today published its report on the May 2008 elections for the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.
The report found that the elections went smoothly with few problems on polling day. But there were some areas of concern, particularly regarding the use of electronic counting, which the Commission feels should be addressed prior to future elections.
Overall, the Commission found that electronic counting in London was better planned and managed than at previous elections where votes had been counted electronically. The report does however identify a number of concerns about the use of electronic counting in London, including:
- Apparent discrepancies between the numbers of ballot papers recorded as having been issued and the numbers scanned;
- the high level of technical knowledge required to understand and properly scrutinise electronic counting systems;
- errors in the transmission of results data to the central count collation centre at City Hall.
The Commission again calls on the UK Government to put in place a clear national strategy for using electronic counting before it is used in future UK elections, including carrying out a full cost benefit analysis of electronic counting, an analysis of the legal changes required to support it, and appropriate safeguards to ensure that electronic counting is accurate and transparent.
The report reiterates the Commission’s view that changes to electoral law should not be made within six months before any election.
In autumn of 2009, the Commission will be setting performance standards for Returning Officers to support improvements in the quality of election management and ensure electors’ interests are put at the centre of the democratic process.
Andrew Scallan, Director of Electoral Administration and Boundaries, Electoral Commission said: “Running these elections was a significant challenge for elections teams across London, but overall we found they were well run. It is essential that the public can have confidence in all aspects of the electoral process and we still have significant concerns about the use of electronic counting for elections in the UK. We continue to press the Government for a national strategy on the use of electronic counting and we also want to see the Greater London Returning Officer carry out a comparison of the costs and benefits of both electronic and manual options for counting ballot papers before the next GLA elections in 2012.”
Other key findings of the report include:
- The design of the ballot papers for these elections appears to have improved as a result of testing and research, and electors benefited from clearer and more accessible design.
- The Commission was not able to review the results of quality assurance audits carried out on the electronic counting system before the publication of its report, although some of the information has since been made available
Key statistics from the report include:
- Just under 5. 5 million people were registered to vote in one of the largest and most complex set of elections in the UK
- Turnout was 45%, compared to 36% in 2004.
- The proportion of electors who requested a postal vote increased from 8.4% in 2004 to 11.8% in 2008
- Electors choosing to vote by post were much more likely to cast their vote: 72% of those issued with a postal vote used it.
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For further information contact:
020 7271 0704
Out of hours: 07789 920414
Email: press@electoralcommission.org.uk
Notes to editors
- 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
- There were elections to 137 local authorities across all regions of England. Included in the figure above there were shadow election in 4 new unitary authorities; Durham, Northumberland, East Cheshire & Chester and West Cheshire; a separate report covers these elections
- In Wales, there where elections to all 22 local unitary authorities; a separate report covers these elections.
- The full report is available on the Electoral Commission website.
