Young and old voters, ethnic minorities and transgender people are at risk of being cut out of today’s local elections by government plans to block those without ID from voting, charities and campaigners have warned.
Ten areas will run trials of compulsory voter ID in an effort to clamp down on fraud.
But opponents led by the Electoral Reform Society (ERS) have issued a stark warning that the plans could “pull up the drawbridge” for millions of people in marginalised groups who are less likely to hold identification.
Charities and campaign groups including the ERS, Age UK, Liberty, the British Youth Council, and Gendered Intelligence said under-20s, over-65s, black and ethnic minority communities (BAME) and transgender people could be worst hit.
Critics also insisted compulsory voter ID is unnecessary as personation fraud - the crime of pretending to be someone else at the ballot box - accounted for just eight of the 266 cases investigated by police in the 2018 local and mayoral elections.
No further action was taken in seven of the cases and the other was resolved locally, according to figures released by the Electoral Commission in March.
On Thursday, voters will need to show ID in 10 areas: Braintree, Broxtowe, Craven, Derby, Mid-Sussex, North Kesteven, North West Leicestershire, Pendle, Watford, and Woking
Depending on the area, they will either have to show their polling card, or one piece of photo ID, or two without a photo.
But the ERS voiced scepticism about whether the scheme, if rolled out nationally, would ever require less proof than photo ID because any weaker requirement, such as polling cards or utility bills, would be easy to mock up by fraudsters.
“Millions lack photographic ID, meaning the scheme could lock out both older voters, young voters, and those whose current ID does not match their gender”
It warned that around 3.5m citizens, or 7.5% of the electorate, have no access to photo ID.
And it said women, those living in urban areas, the under-20s and over 65s were less likely to hold a driving license.
Since the 1990s, possession of a driving license has dropped by 40% among under-20s – making it a poor basis for a voter ID policy, according to the charities and campaigners.
Darren Hughes, ERS chief executive, said: “These voter ID plans – if rolled out nationally - could pull up the drawbridge for millions of voters, including many already on the margins.
“Millions lack photographic ID, meaning the scheme could lock out both older voters, young voters, and those whose current ID does not match their gender.
“The government must urgently rethink its drive to make it harder to vote, and instead improve concentrate on improving access to democracy – not undermining it.”
Caroline Abrahams, charity director of Age UK, said: “We are worried that requiring proof of identity at the ballot box could inadvertently impede some older people from voting, since they are far less likely than younger groups to have forms of photo ID like passports and driving licences readily to hand.”
Sam Grant, policy and campaigns manager of Liberty, said: “This will further threaten people’s right to vote and will disproportionately affect young people, older people, disabled people, transgender people, BAME communities and the homeless.
“Again, the government is risking fundamental human rights in an effort to solve a problem that the statistics show does not really exist.”
Amanda Chetwynd-Cowieson, chair of the British Youth Council, said the scheme could see “legitimate people” turned away from the ballot box.
“We believe that the right of young people, and other marginalised communities, to vote must be protected. We encourage the government to take the concerns of these communities into account, to reconsider the further implementation of the voter ID scheme, and look at different solutions that are proportionate to the actual risk of electoral fraud,” she said.
Cara English, of Gendered Intelligence, warned of the impact on the trans community.
“For reasons of identity, safety or money, many trans people showing up to vote would simply not appear as they would on their photo ID and may be turned away.”
A Cabinet Office spokesperson said: “Electoral fraud is an unacceptable crime that strikes at a core principle of our democracy - that everyone’s vote matters.
“Showing ID to vote is a reasonable way to stop this and is something people already do every day, when they pick up a parcel at the Post Office, claim their benefits, or take out a library book.
“Both last year’s pilots and the decades of experience of Northern Ireland show that voter ID does not have an adverse effect on election turnout or participation.”
The call for a rethink was also backed by Silver Voices, Unlock Democracy and TalkPolitics.