Reform UK plan to limit postal voting following by-election loss

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph and the Mail on Sunday, Nigel Farage claimed postal voting has turned the UK’s elections into a “laughing stock”, adding that allowing non-British citizens to vote is “absurd”.

Currently, anyone eligible to vote in UK elections can choose to do so by post but under Reform UK’s plans this would be limited to the elderly, disabled, serving armed forces personnel and those working overseas during an election.

Under the proposals, Commonwealth citizens, who can currently vote in all types of UK elections if they qualify as a resident, would lose their right to go to the polls.

A spokesperson for Reform UK confirmed the changes would not affect Irish citizens, who also have the right to vote in parliamentary elections.

The policy was born out of Mr Farage’s belief that allowing Commonwealth citizens to vote “undermines national sovereignty” and leads to elections being fought over international rather than domestic issues, Reform UK said.

In 2012, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimated there were around 1.2 million Commonwealth nationals living in the UK.

Mr Farage said: “For too long, postal voting has allowed our elections to be turned into a laughing stock, riddled with fraud, intimidation and outright cheating. It’s been allowed to go on for years and has poisoned trust in our democracy.

“Meanwhile, allowing non-Brits – people with zero connection to this country – to vote on our future is absurd. It is right that only British citizens should be able to vote in British parliamentary elections.

“That’s why a Reform government will immediately ban wholesale postal voting and ensure only British citizens can vote in elections in order to bring back trust to British democracy.”

The announcement comes after Reform UK asked the police to investigate allegations of election fraud in the Gorton and Denton by-election this week.

The winner of the election was Bolton-born Green Party candidate Hannah Spencer, 34, who managed to overturn a significant labour majority to become the new MP for Gorton and Denton.

Green Party’s Hannah Spencer celebrates winning the Gorton and Denton by-election at Manchester Central. The by-election was triggered by the resignation of former MP Andrew Gwynne who cited health reasons for his decision. Picture date: Friday (Image: Peter Byrne)

Election observer group Democracy Volunteers warned it had witnessed “concerningly high levels” of “family voting” – an illegal practice where two voters use one polling booth and potentially direct each other on voting.

Mr Farage promised to take “action” after the next general election if nothing is done about the allegations, adding: “If this is what was happening at polling stations, just imagine the potential for coercion with postal votes.”

Tory party chairman Kevin Hollinrake said allegations of “family voting” taking place in the Gorton and Denton by-election are “deeply concerning” but branded Reform UK’s plans a “headline-grabbing” exercise.

He said: “Rushing to impose sweeping bans on postal voting is a kneejerk reaction that risks disenfranchising pensioners, disabled people and overseas British citizens who rely on postal ballots to have their say.

“We must safeguard our elections with proportionate, evidence-based reforms, not headline-grabbing measures that could lock law-abiding voters out of our democratic process.”

The Reform UK leader has frequently complained about postal voting when his parties have lost by-elections.

When his former party, Ukip, lost the Oldham West and Royton by-election in 2015, Mr Farage alleged postal votes had been abused, saying the result raised questions about the conduct of elections in constituencies with large ethnic minority communities.

When his Brexit Party lost the Peterborough by-election in 2019, Farage again criticised the postal vote system.

The Brexit Party candidate challenged the result in court but later withdrew the challenge and was ordered to pay the winning Labour candidate’s legal costs.

The latest Electoral Commission data, from 2024, shows no evidence of large-scale election fraud in the UK, with 94% of allegations resolved locally with “words of advice”, or resulting in the police taking no further action.

Reform UK MP Richard Tice questioned the validity of postal ballots when his party’s candidate lost the Rochdale by-election in 2024, stressing the result should act as a “serious wake-up call” to the electorate and those in power.

In none of those cases was postal voting fraud ever proved and none resulted in any convictions.