|
Editor's factfile: Monday April 25
 |
| Craig Hoy: Charting the campaign course |
Is my ballot secret or can the political parties find out how I vote on May 5?
Although canvassers from the political parties may seek to find out how to you intend to vote, the decision you make on the day is between you and the ballot box.
In the 19th century voters used to declare their intention to a presiding officer who would record the vote.
But the Chartist movement demanded a secret ballot and that was enshrined in law when the 1872 Secret Ballot Act was passed.
To ensure secrecy on the day, polling booths are shielded and ballot boxes are sealed before they leave for the count - where they are opened in public.
Ballot papers are stored for one year in a secure environment, after which they are destroyed.
It is technically possible, however, to match a ballot paper to a voter - so in one sense the system is not 100 per cent secret.
To prevent fraud ballot papers are printed in books and both the papers and counterfoils have the same number printed on them.
When you vote the polling officer puts your electoral registration number on the counterfoil.
Access to ballot papers, in the light of suspected fraud, can only be ordered by an election court.
For example if it was alleged that widespread impersonation had taken place, or if it is claimed that ballot papers had subsequently been tampered with, then it may be necessary to seek to assess whether a person's vote has been accurately recorded.
Only in these extreme circumstances can the link between elector, ballot paper and counterfoil be made. Not since 1911 has a full vote trace taken place in a constituency.
So while it is technically possible to identify who voted in a particular way this is a safeguard against fraud rather than a challenge to the secrecy of the ballot.
Critics, however, say the system is inherently flawed and have called for an end to the numbering of counterfoils.
Human rights group Liberty says the current system may breach the European Convention on Human Rights and the UK's Human Rights Act.
|
