Last month, ahead of the party’s annual conference, Nigel Farage MP announced that he intends to ‘give up ownership of Reform UK’. This news follows a period of sustained media interest in, and scrutiny of, Reform’s atypical legal status. Unlike … [Read more...] about How to Constitute a Political Party
When the result of the broadcasters' exit poll was revealed at 10 o’clock on 4 July, the lack of surprise was almost palpable. The headline projection – a Labour landside – had been echoed consistently by virtually every major opinion poll carried … [Read more...] about Opinion polls during elections: to ban or not to ban?
Election rules and debates may sometimes feel like relics of a bygone era – an era in which politicians communicated with the electorate through a handful of broadcasters and newspapers. Instead, social media now plays an increasing role as a … [Read more...] about Defending the Neutral Ground: Election Coverage in the Algorithmic Era
In January of this year, to relatively little fanfare, the UK Government extended voting rights to people who no longer live in the UK. In secondary legislation putting into effect the 2022 Elections Act, the previous 15-year time-limit on overseas … [Read more...] about Should long-term emigrants be allowed to vote?
When I wrote my last article for the Constitution Society in December, it focused on the impact on local authorities of the forthcoming introduction of ID to vote. Following the elections on May 4th there is now a wider discussion taking … [Read more...] about Observing the introduction of Voter ID in 2023 in England
The Labour Party has recently come in for criticism over a series of online advertisements alleging, among other things, that Rishi Sunak doesn’t think perpetrators of sexual offences against children should go to prison. The adverts cite as their … [Read more...] about UK elections law: complex, fragmented and in need of reform?
As an election observer, I am used to observing elections in the UK and outside it with the election observation organisation, Democracy Volunteers. Following our observations, we make recommendations to election authorities about how to improve … [Read more...] about Elections change is largest in almost a century
Over the last few months, there has been much ink spilled over the Elections Bill, which is currently at the Committee Stage in the House of Commons. A number of the provisions contained in the bill are, however, relatively uncontroversial. Measures … [Read more...] about Eroding the independence of the Electoral Commission: the introduction of a government Strategy and Policy Statement
In July, the government published its long-awaited Elections Bill which makes changes to the administration and conduct of elections with the stated aim of ensuring that ‘UK elections remain secure, fair, modern, inclusive and … [Read more...] about What is the Elections Bill? And why is it an issue?
Early in July, buried amidst the many reactions to the government’s Elections Bill, the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) published its report on regulating election finance, following a year-long inquiry to which the Electoral Reform … [Read more...] about How can we better regulate our elections?
