No evidence of 'family voting' in Gorton and Denton by-election

There was "no evidence" of illegal "family voting" or voter coercion at the Gorton and Denton by-election, police have concluded after an investigation.

Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, reported allegations of "family voting" after the poll last month to Greater Manchester Police and the Electoral Commission.

Family voting is where a family member is seen to be influencing somebody else's vote, for example by entering the polling booth with them.

GMP said there was "no evidence to suggest any intent to influence or refrain a person from voting as stated in the Ballot Secrecy Act 2023" but Farage called it an "establishment whitewash".

He hit out at GMP's decision to close the probe, adding: "This isn't good enough.

"We need proper oversight, real accountability and the courage to admit when something isn't right, not another brushed-under-the-carpet report from the usual suspects."

Following the by-election on 26 February - where Green Party MP Hannah Spencer won the Labour stronghold seat - Farage said there were reports by independent election observers, Democracy Volunteers, of "extremely high" levels of family voting.

A Green Party source told the BBC it was an attempt by Reform to "undermine the result" and was "a petulant refusal to accept a clear outcome".

But Democracy Volunteers said its report reflected "observations made in good faith by experienced and trained, independent and non-partisan observers on polling day".

GMP said it had spoken to officers at all 45 polling stations, none of whom received any reports, other than from Democracy Volunteers.

Out of the 45 polling stations, 41 said they did not have CCTV activated in the building as it would have compromised the secrecy of the vote during polling day, in line with official advice.

Of the CCTV reviewed, police said there was no evidence of anyone directing or coercing another regarding how to vote.

Volunteers were unable to provide descriptions of those allegedly involved, or timings - and no details were documented by observers.

"We have spoken to the four Democracy Volunteers observers present at polling stations on the day of the by-election - 26 February - who have shared with us their eyewitness account," police said

"This includes some instances of more than one voter going into a booth at the same time, and instances of people looking over the shoulder of voters.

"The information they have provided to us estimates this may have happened on 32 occasions across 15 polling stations.

"The observers do not allege any verbal instruction or physical conduct that indicated one person was directing or coercing another regarding how to vote."

"The absence of this information means there is no remaining reasonable line of enquiry," police added.

Returning Officer Tom Stannard said he welcomed the conclusion of the criminal investigation, adding: "We are confident that the allegations are not substantiated, and that the integrity of the by-election was not affected.

He said the claims had been made public "just minutes after the polls had closed" and "by contrast, it was 11 days before the observer's specific claims were shared with us".

"If observers had concerns they should have raised them with polling station staff immediately.

"It is unfortunate that did not happen in this case."

Writing on X, Green Party leader Zack Polanski said: "The morning after Hannah won I was asked time and time again about this.

"There was no evidence for it. Instead the establishment media fuelled the fire. It was Islamaphobic.

"And it's because those in power are scared of us ending rip off Britain."

The Electoral Commission said allegations of fraud were taken very seriously.

Vijay Rangarajan, chief executive, said: "Voters must be able to trust that our elections are secure and conducted with integrity.

"It is equally important that any allegations about the security and integrity of elections are supported by evidence, so voters have accurate information about how polls are conducted."

The commission has recently updated its code of practice and guidance for electoral observers, which he said would "help accredited observers understand the standards expected of them and how to raise concerns appropriately".

A spokesperson for Democracy Volunteers added: "We used a robust methodology aligned with international observation standards and drew on extensive UK and international experience.

"The report was issued to support transparency in the electoral process."