Barnet Voting Chaos After Council Botches Voter Registration Lists

Chaos At Barnet Polling Stations After Council Botches Voter Registration Lists
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Widespread problems with voting in London's most populous borough have prompted complaints from candidates and calls for a public enquiry.

Reports of disruption in Barnet, north London came just after 8am as people attending polling stations found their names weren't on official lists.

Barnet Council has now issued an "emergency proxy vote" for affected residents who can register a person to vote on their behalf by 5pm on Thursday.

Earlier, the topic began trending as scores of outraged voters aired their dismay at the problems.

Sophie Walker, the Women's Equality Party mayoral candidate, has registered a complaint with the council, along with the London Assembly.

She told the Press Association: "I am very disappointed. I have spent my morning responding to messages from people upset that they could not vote.

"Women first got the vote 100 years ago and there are women today who have been unable to vote."

A statement from the borough's Liberal Democrat branch claimed as many as four in five voters were turned away when voting began.

The group said: "The Barnet Liberal Democrats are calling for a full public enquiry as to why the presiding officers at Barnet polling stations do not have the full electoral roll and only the amended list.

"With up to 4 in 5 voters being turned away in the early hours it can only be seen as an affront to democracy."

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Sophie Walker, the Women's Equality Party mayoral candidate, has registered a complaint with the council, along with the London Assembly
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When contacted on Thursday morning, Barnet Council said it didn't know the numbers of voters affected by the problems.

Charlotte, a voter from East Finchley, told BBC London: "I went to the polls and there was a queue which was unusual as it was just after 7am.

"And everyone was being told they were not on the list.

"This included people who couldn't then come back later in the day.

"They basically lost their vote, essentially.

"Everyone was being sent away, the observing officer had been on the phone to Barnet council and they said they'd sent out the wrong lists."

Sandra, another Barnet resident, said her husband and daughter had forgotten their poll cards and were unable to vote on Thursday morning.

She said neither will be able to cast their ballots later on. "I'm disgusted," she added.

Another caller to BBC London said he had phoned the police in frustration.

Barnet's local authority has been dubbed the "Easy Council" due to its outsourcing efforts.

However, voter lists are not the responsibility of a third party.

The borough is London's most populous, with some 393,000 residents the council said last year.

Barnet Council confirmed to The Huffington Post UK that there had been a problem with voter lists.

A spokesperson later said: "Anyone who attended a polling station in Barnet this morning, and was turned away and therefore could not vote, and was unable to return due to work reasons, may be able to use an emergency proxy vote.

"They will need to complete an application form on our website (www.barnet.gov.uk) and return it by 5pm today. People can find out more about how to vote by emergency proxy at https://www.barnet.gov.uk/citizen-home/council-and-democracy/democracy-and-elections/elections-in-barnet.html."

Before You Go

Polling Day Voters
(01 of17)
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Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative Party candidate for London mayor, exit a polling station after voting in the Mayor of London and London Assembly elections in his constituency of Richmond Park & North Kingston in London, U.K., on Thursday, May 5, 2016. Britain goes to the polls Thursday in a series of local and legislative elections that will deliver a new mayor for London, continued nationalist government in Scotland and the voters' first verdict on Jeremy Corbyn's leadership of the opposition Labour Party. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images (credit:Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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Britain's Conservative party candidate for London Mayor Zac Goldsmith (R) and his wife Alice arrive at a Polling Station in south-west London on May 5, 2016, to cast their votes.Londoners go to the polls on Thursday to elect their new mayor following a bitter campaign between the two leading candidates, Goldsmith, and Labour's Sadiq Khan, that stayed ugly to the very end. / AFP / BEN STANSALL (Photo credit should read BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:BEN STANSALL via Getty Images)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 05: Conservative Mayoral candidate, Zac Goldsmith, leaves a polling station with his wife Alice Miranda Goldsmith at Kitson Hall, Barnes after casting his vote on May 5, 2016 in London, England. This is the fifth mayoral election since the position was created in 2000. Previous London Mayors are Ken Livingstone for Labour and more recently Boris Johnson for the Conservatives. The main candidates for 2016 are Sadiq Khan, Labour, Zac Goldsmith , Conservative, Sian Berry, Green, Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat, George Galloway, Respect, Peter Whittle, UKIP and Sophie Walker, Woman's Equality Party. Results will be declared on Friday 6th May. (Photo by Chris Ratcliffe/Getty Images) (credit:Chris Ratcliffe via Getty Images)
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Britain's Labour party candidate for London Mayor Sadiq Khan leaves a Polling Station in south London on May 5, 2016, after casting his vote.Londoners go to the polls on Thursday to elect their new mayor following a bitter campaign between the two leading candidates Khan, and Conservative Zac Goldsmith, that stayed ugly to the very end. / AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Britain's Labour party candidate for London Mayor Sadiq Khan (R) and his wife Saadiya pose for photographers as they leave a Polling Station in south London on May 5, 2016, after casting their votes.Londoners go to the polls on Thursday to elect their new mayor following a bitter campaign between the two leading candidates Khan, and Conservative Zac Goldsmith, that stayed ugly to the very end. / AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 5: Britain's Labour Candidate for Mayor of London Sadiq Kahn (R) arrives with his wife Saadiya to vote at a polling station in south London, United Kingdom on May 5, 2016. (Photo by NEIL HALL/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
(07 of17)
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Britain's Labour party candidate for London Mayor Sadiq Khan (R) and his wife Saadiya pose for photographers as they leave a Polling Station in south London on May 5, 2016, after casting their votes.Londoners go to the polls on Thursday to elect their new mayor following a bitter campaign between the two leading candidates Khan, and Conservative Zac Goldsmith, that stayed ugly to the very end. / AFP / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:JUSTIN TALLIS via Getty Images)
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Britain's Conservative party candidate for London Mayor Zac Goldsmith leaves a Polling Station in south-west London on May 5, 2016, after casting his vote.Londoners go to the polls on Thursday to elect their new mayor following a bitter campaign between the two leading candidates, Goldsmith, and Labour's Sadiq Khan, that stayed ugly to the very end. / AFP / BEN STANSALL (Photo credit should read BEN STANSALL/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:BEN STANSALL via Getty Images)
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EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - MAY 05: Scottish Labour Leader Kezia Dugdale (R) and her partner Louise Riddell arrive at St Ninian & Triduana RC Church to vote in the Scottish Parliament elections on May 5, 2016 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Today, dubbed 'Super Thursday', sees the British public vote in countrywide elections to choose members for the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly, the Northern Ireland Assembly, Local Councils, a new London Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioners. There are around 45 million registered voters in the UK and polling stations open from 7am until 10pm. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
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EDINBURGH, SCOTLAND - MAY 05: Scottish Labour Leader Kezia Dugdale and her partner Louise Riddell arrive at St Ninian & Triduana RC Church to vote in the Scottish Parliament elections on May 5, 2016 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Today, dubbed 'Super Thursday', sees the British public vote in countrywide elections to choose members for the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly, the Northern Ireland Assembly, Local Councils, a new London Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioners. There are around 45 million registered voters in the UK and polling stations open from 7am until 10pm. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) (credit:Matt Cardy via Getty Images)
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Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn arrives to cast his vote at a polling station in Islington, north London. (credit:Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire)
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Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn arrives to cast his vote at a polling station in Islington, north London. (credit:Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire)
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SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon after casting her vote at Broomhouse Community Hall polling station in Glasgow as Scotland goes to the polls in the Scottish Parliament election. (credit:Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 05: George Osborne casts his vote in the London Mayoral Election on May 05, 2016 in London, England. This is the fifth mayoral election since the position was created in 2000. Previous London Mayors are Ken Livingstone for Labour and more recently Boris Johnson for the Conservatives. The main candidates for 2016 are Sadiq Khan, Labour, Zac Goldsmith , Conservative, Sian Berry, Green, Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat, George Galloway, Respect, Peter Whittle, UKIP and Sophie Walker, Woman's Equality Party. Results will be declared on Friday 6th May. (Photo by Neil P. Mockford/Getty Images) (credit:Neil P. Mockford via Getty Images)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 05: George Osborne casts his vote in the London Mayoral Election on May 05, 2016 in London, England. This is the fifth mayoral election since the position was created in 2000. Previous London Mayors are Ken Livingstone for Labour and more recently Boris Johnson for the Conservatives. The main candidates for 2016 are Sadiq Khan, Labour, Zac Goldsmith , Conservative, Sian Berry, Green, Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat, George Galloway, Respect, Peter Whittle, UKIP and Sophie Walker, Woman's Equality Party. Results will be declared on Friday 6th May. (Photo by Neil P. Mockford/Getty Images) (credit:Neil P. Mockford via Getty Images)
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SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon after casting her vote at Broomhouse Community Hall polling station in Glasgow as Scotland goes to the polls in the Scottish Parliament election. (credit:Danny Lawson/PA Wire)
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LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 05: David Cameron and Samantha Cameron arrive to cast their votes in the London Mayoral Election on May 05, 2016 in London, England. This is the fifth mayoral election since the position was created in 2000. Previous London Mayors are Ken Livingstone for Labour and more recently Boris Johnson for the Conservatives. The main candidates for 2016 are Sadiq Khan, Labour, Zac Goldsmith , Conservative, Sian Berry, Green, Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrat, George Galloway, Respect, Peter Whittle, UKIP and Sophie Walker, Woman's Equality Party. Results will be declared on Friday 6th May. (Photo by Neil P. Mockford/Getty Images) (credit:Neil P. Mockford via Getty Images)