Labour is being urged to send ballot papers to all members who have not yet voted in its leadership election, after continuing complaints that some are still waiting for their chance to take part. MPs were contacting the party last week with concerns, with some members complaining of a “farcical” situation in which they were having to provide high levels of proof of their identity before being granted a vote. Others said they simply had not received their email entitling them to vote in the online poll. Labour First, a group on the right of the party, surveyed its members earlier this month and found that 10% who responded had not received their electronic ballot paper. Another survey last week asked activists who had not received a ballot for details, and hundreds replied saying that they had had problems. Some members said they had been forced to ask their local council for proof that they were on the electoral roll after being denied a vote by the party. One MP said: “I’ve had loads of members getting in touch with problems, particularly about the electoral register. One who has been persistent in chasing the party has now been given the ballot, but it has required him to get proof from the local authority electoral services. My concern is that for every member who pursues it, there will be others who don’t bother and just don’t vote.” Another MP has also alerted the party to an issue affecting members who are under 18, who cannot use proof of their identity from the electoral register as they are not old enough to be on it. Anyone aged 14 or over can join the party.
Other members said that they had received a ballot for the leadership election, but did not have one for an election for places on the party’s ruling national executive committee, which currently has a majority of members from Labour’s large left wing. Among those complaining are peers, MPs, party officers and councillors, all of whom were long-term members. However, party sources said that the independent company overseeing the ballot believed that it was seeing the level of voting it would expect at this point in the contest. Ballots close on 2 April, with the results announced on 4 April. Some members who have raised concerns said that they had been impressed with the speed at which Jennie Formby, the Labour general secretary, was responding to cases. Party sources said that there were no plans to send out paper ballots to those who had not voted, but Labour is planning to send three reminder emails to members, with the first going out on Monday. Luke Akehurst, secretary of Labour First, said: “We are alarmed that there is clearly a glitch where a large number of members did not receive their NEC ballot, some new members are being ruled out on what appear to be spurious grounds, and – for whatever reason – approaching 10% of members say they haven’t received a ballot at all. The party is resending the NEC ballots, but turnout in this contest will clearly still be affected. We would call on the party to send a paper ballot now to everyone who hasn’t voted yet in case resending emails does not reach them. All these elections are crucial for Labour’s future. It is essential for their democratic legitimacy that every effort has been made to enable every member to vote.” Party sources said that its membership team was working through a plan to ensure that all members could vote and that there were no concerns about their capacity to look at the individual cases being raised. Members can ask for their ballot to be reissued through the party’s website, they said, while there was still plenty of time to cast a vote. A Labour spokesman said: “We are committed to ensuring that the leadership election is open, fair and democratic.”