Labor and Conservative activists fear turnout in next month’s closed local elections could be hampered by “unnecessary hassle” with voting and voter apathy after a chaotic year.

There are also fears that voter turnout could be affected by Election Day on May 4, just before the long coronation weekend, amid fears that some voters were planning to leave.

A candidate for a labor council seat said he was trying to get people to sign up for mail-in ballots to allay fears of low turnout.

“Voter ID plays a huge role in deterring people. Even those who have an identity card will not bother, as they see this as unnecessary trouble, ”they said.

“We are doing everything we can to get people to sign up for a mail-in vote to solve this problem, but you can’t talk to everyone and it looks like the Tories are intent on bringing in working class people who already have one great degree of apathy. to politics to vote in May.

This was reported by a source in the government. I that they predicted lower-than-usual voter turnout due to the combined effect of the coronation, the impact of new voter identity laws, and apathy among conservative members.

Alarm bells have also been raised due to limited publicity in some areas of legislative changes requiring all voters to identify themselves at the polls.

This is what the London Labor MP said I: “The government has said they are running a major information campaign about the need for a voter card, but I haven’t seen anything.

“Maybe it’s because I live in London. However, I was at the campaign sites and didn’t see anything there either.

“The danger is that they will allow certain concessions, i.e. B. Allow retirees to use their bus tickets but prevent young people from doing so, and that disabled people are likely to be penalized if they do not enjoy driving or are less likely to travel. and therefore will not have passports and permits.”

What are the new voter identification rules?

For the first time in England, voters in the next local elections on 4 May will be required to show valid identification in order to vote.

Accepted identifiers include:

• British passport
• Valid driver’s license
• PAS issued ID
• blue icon map
• Some local transport cards like Ouderenbuspas or Vrijheidspas.
• An identity card issued by a European Economic Area (EEA) country.
• Passport issued by the Channel Islands, Isle of Man, British Overseas Territory, EEA state or Commonwealth country.

Voters must provide original documents – photocopies or scans are not accepted at polling stations.

Those who do not have one of the accepted ID cards can apply for a certificate at the Electoral Commission, but must apply by 5:00 pm April 25.

A complete list of accepted photo IDs can be found on the Board of Elections website.

Another Labor Party source attempted to downplay concerns that many were denied the vote due to lack of proper identification, saying that while there was a risk that turnout could suffer, it was important to wait and see.

This was confirmed by a Conservative adviser currently fighting in the south of England, who said that “the people I spoke to already understand what it is and why it was introduced.”

“Both major parties, the government and many advisers have done a major communications operation to let people know what is going on. It’s even on people’s survey cards sent to them directly,” they said.

Chris Hopkins, director of political research at Savanta UK, said it was “difficult to see how much the new rules could affect turnout, but they are unlikely to have a major impact on upcoming local elections.”

“Perhaps the impact is a little overstated,” he said. I.

“Those who are less likely to have ID are less likely to vote in this election anyway, and those who vote in local elections are likely to be much more concerned about the rules.”

However, he hinted that the new rules could have more impact in the next general election, which is expected to take place sometime in 2024.

“From a purely perspective, I see that as we get closer to the general election, we will have problems trying to weed out those who say they are going to vote a certain way and in fact do not have an identity card. or had no voting rights,” Mr. Hopkins continued.

“I definitely see the general election coming up, there are some high-profile stories of huge waves of people who don’t have proper ID and are denied access to the polls.”

Activists have warned that thousands of people could be disenfranchised by the controversial imposition of electoral identity laws.

The requirement was included in the UK Government Elections Act last year and will go into effect for the first time in May.

Voters without a recognized ID, which is likely more than two million people, according to the government’s own research, can only vote until April 25.