SubscriptionsCategory: Democracy
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Why Mayors Outside Westminster Are Distancing Themselves From their Parties’ Politics and Colours
Much was made of newly elected Conservative Mayor Ben Houchen not being able to find a blue rosette – but outside the Westminster bubble associations with party brands are often an obstacle to get work done
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Stop the Votes: Conservative MP Calls for Postal Vote Ban After Huge Local Election Defeats
The call follows a series of attempts by the Conservative party to change the electoral system to their benefit
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Telegraph Columnist Says Voter ID Issue ‘Just Bonkers’ After his Wife was Told to Return With Marriage Certificate Before She Could Vote
Discrepancies between married names and maiden names on IDs caused problems for some voters, but not others on Thursday – suggesting the rules were not applied consistently
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‘Undemocratic’ and Possible ‘Gerrymandering’: Voters Express Anger After First Past the Post Introduced for Mayoral and PCC Elections
The change to First Past the Post is expected to benefit Conservatives like Susan Hall, who might win fewer second preference votes than Labour
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‘I Had to Argue for My Right to Vote’: Voters Report Being Denied a Say in Local Elections Due to Strict Photo ID Law
Voters say they struggled to prove their identities as polling stations enforced England’s draconian photo ID rules
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Ex-Army Officer Who Served in Afghanistan ‘Blocked from Ballot Box’ After Veteran ID Rejected
EXCLUSIVE: One ex-Army MP branded the situation “ludicrous” while even Conservatives seemed to despair
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The Great Conservative Election Data-Trawl Continues
Byline Times has spotted four more instances of questionable data collection by parliamentary candidates. Can you help this newspaper find more?
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Just a Fraction of Voters Who Lack Photo ID Apply for ‘Free’ Identification – In Warning Sign for Mayoral Elections
Low take-up of the Government’s Voter Authority Certificate poses a risk to voters in May’s local elections, campaigners warn
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Voter Data is Being Trawled by Conservative Politicians – Help Us Shine a Light On It
Help Byline Times follow the dark money and track the dirty data as millions are spent on online political campaigning this election year
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As India Votes, Modi Ignores the Violence in Manipur
Why is the Indian Government turning a blind eye to the ‘civil war’ raging in the northeastern state?
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‘Trump’s Second Presidential Run and the Francis Scott Key Bridge Collapse Have a Lot In Common’
Baltimore’s Francis Scott Bridge collapsed after one part of the structure was hit by a ship. The disaster is a perfect metaphor for the crisis Europe may face if Trump is re-elected, writes Alexandra Hall
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‘The Joe Biden Impeachment Hearing Says Everything About Republicans and Nothing About the President’
Lev Parnas’ bombshell testimony shows the Republicans’ have ‘absolutely no evidence’ against President Joe Biden
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A ‘Damning Indictment’: Eight Million Voters May Be Disenfranchised in General Election, MPs Find
The UK’s electoral registration arrangements are a ‘threat to the rights of British voters’
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Patriotic Alternative: The Threat from the Far Right
A revitalised Europe wide white supremacist movement is growing in the UK, gaining recruits through social media and online gaming
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‘Fixing Broken Britain Starts with Changing a Broken Light Bulb’
UK democracy needs radical reform – but there is little evidence our leaders are ready to take up the challenge, writes Alun Drake
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‘Who Are the Extremists Who Would Tear Us Apart?’
Mustafa Al-Dabbagh argues that it is the Government, not those calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, which is using extremist and divisive rhetoric
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Yes, Lord David Cameron Could Come Back as Prime Minister – and he Wouldn’t Need to Run for MP
New analysis sheds light on a constitutional quirk that allows a member of the House of Lords – or someone outside Parliament altogether – to become Prime Minister
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Rishi Sunak Brushes Off Calls to Commit to an ‘Honest’ Election Campaign
The Conservative benches appeared to burst with laughter at the suggestion
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‘A Voluntary Tech Agreement Will Do Little to Defend Electoral Integrity Against the Worst Uses of AI’
The Tech Accord to Combat Deceptive Use of AI in 2024 Elections is well-meaning but lacks detail and urgency, argues Emma DeSouza
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‘Fighting the Enlightenment?’: What Do Danny Kruger’s New Conservatives Really Want?
Among all the new forms of Conservatism springing up in the run up to the next election, Kruger’s New Conservatives appear to be the most religious in their “holy war against the Left”
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‘Starmer Should Ignore the Westminster Pearl-Clutching: Why Labour is Right to Look at Citizens’ Assemblies’
It’s time for politicians to show leadership and give away some power, writes Compass’ Frances Foley
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Viktor Orbán is Battling the Greatest Political Crisis of His Tenure
A scandal involving a pardon to a paedophile’s accomplice has already taken down Hungary’s former justice minister, President, and the head of the Hungarian Reformed Church
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Millions Missing from Electoral Roll as Voters Face Double Whammy of Registration Issues and Photo ID
In some constituencies, one-fifth of potential voters have not signed up to the electoral roll, new analysis reveals
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Disabled Trans Woman Who Says She’s Been ‘Denied Vote’ Due to Photo ID Rules Launches Legal Challenge
The Government is refusing to expand the list of approved forms of voter ID despite warnings of large numbers of voters set to be turned away at the general election
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‘It’s Like GB News Regulating Ofcom’: House of Lords Slams New Government-Imposed Strategy for Elections Watchdog
Levelling Up secretary Michael Gove now sets the overarching “strategy and policy” of the previously independent Electoral Commission.
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Ten Million Voters Still Don’t Know They Need Voter ID
Rishi Sunak’s Government has been accused of trying to “gerrymander” the next general election by making it harder for certain groups to vote
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‘Straight Out of the Republican Playbook’: Conservatives Impose New Strategy on Elections Watchdog in Crucial Election Year
The new Government-set priorities for the Electoral Commission make no mention of AI or misinformation – but plenty of mentions of almost non-existent voter fraud
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Why Is Boris Johnson Endorsing a Second Trump Presidency in the Name of Ukraine?
Donald Trump has not stood up to Vladimir Putin and will not stand up to Russian President if he returns to the White House, writes Paul Niland
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Two Million More Brits Living Abroad Now Eligible to Donate to UK Parties as Ministers Scrap Time Limit
It’s the latest in a series of constitutional changes by ministers – including enforcing photo ID for in-person voters and hiking the spending limits for parties.
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Taiwan Elections: Democratic Progressive Party Wins, But What Next?
Taiwan’s presidential election has strengthened its democracy, but could led to increased tensions with China
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‘Not a Bullet for Ukraine’: The Rise and Fall, and Rise Again, of Slovakia’s Populist Prime Minister
Robert Fico rode to electoral victory for the third time on a wave of strongman populism, media capture and pro-Russia rhetoric. But are the cracks beginning to appear?
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Labour’s Andy Burnham Says Just ‘50 People Run the UK’ as Mayor Hits Out at Westminster and Sunak’s Scrappage of HS2
The Greater Manchester Mayor wants the UK to adopt a new codified constitution, proportional representation and an overhauled House of Lords
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Labour Appears to Steer Away from Fully-Elected House of Lords Despite Cronyism Scandals
The Shadow Minister for Democracy also hits out at voter ID – but it is still unclear if Labour will scrap it
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‘Those Who Enjoyed the Post-1945 Social Progress of the West Were Made Complacent By It: We Forgot Its Price is Vigilance’
AC Grayling explores the factors that have driven the rise of ‘illiberal democracy’
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Revealed: Westminster Staff’s Second Jobs
Andrew Kersley takes a close look at the register of interests for Members’ Secretaries and Research Assistants and finds some have surprising other roles
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Government Accused of “Destroying” Independence of UK’s Election Watchdog as New “Priorities” Imposed on Electoral Commission
The Government is now able to steer the strategy and focus of the UK’s elections body.
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UK’s Politics Now Wide Open to Foreign Donations, Peers Warn, as Government Scraps Time Limit on Brits’ Donations from Abroad
Swing seats could be decided by Brits living in Moscow or Iran following changes to election rules
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‘One of the World’s Most Cyber-Attacked Nations’: Parliamentary Report Confirms Russian Interference Attempts in UK Elections – and Slams Braverman’s Inaction to Prioritise ‘Stopping the Boats’
The former Home Secretary showed no interest in urgent threats to the UK as the National Security Strategy Committee reveals that Vladimir Putin made attempts to interfere with the last General Election
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Major Political Reform Could Secure Key Labour Target Voters, Study Suggests
“I think the whole thing is thoroughly broken at this point” a focus group participant said
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Strikes by Ambulance and Border Force Staff now ‘Effectively Banned’ After Minimum Service Levels Pass By Government Diktat
When workers now vote to strike in key sectors, they could be forced to attend work by order of a ‘work notice’
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‘Populists Learn From Each Other’: Is the World Heading for a Tipping Point in 2024?
The prospect of another Trump presidency in the US, rising authoritarianism and multiple complex conflicts around the world make for a depressing picture
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UK’s Next General Election is Wide Open to Foreign Interference, Corruption Watchdog Warns
The Conservatives have made Britain’s elections more exposed to risky foreign donations, according to Spotlight on Corruption
