Allegations and cases of electoral fraud will not only have a negative impact on the confidence of electors and campaigners, but they may also have a significant impact on your capacity to manage the election process effectively.
You should ensure that all candidates and agents understand how to raise specific concerns about electoral fraud relating to the election, including what type and level of evidence will be necessary to enable allegations to be investigated by the police. You should also ensure that they understand how allegations will be dealt with, and what information and feedback they should be able to expect about the progress of any investigations.
The police will investigate any allegations of fraud until, following consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), they are either satisfied that no further action is necessary or appropriate, or they forward the case file to the CPS for prosecution. The police should keep you and, where appropriate, the Local Returning Officer (LRO) and Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) informed of the progress of the case.
You should also be aware that, because of the unique nature of the Police and Crime Commissioner elections, there may be instances when the police force decides that it would be appropriate to ask another force to investigate allegations of electoral fraud relating to these elections. In such an instance, you should ensure that you make contact with the relevant lead officer from the force leading the investigation as quickly as possible.