Electoral Commission recommends significant changes before next Police and Crime Commissioner elections
Only one in five people (22%) had enough information on their Police and Crime Commissioner candidates to make an informed decision, a report published today by the Electoral Commission finds.
The independent elections watchdog recommends significant changes before the next PCC elections in 2016 and identifies wider lessons for the way elections and referendums are delivered.
Turnout
Turnout at last November's polls was 15.1% - the lowest recorded level of participation at a peacetime non-local government election in the UK.
The report found:
The most common reason for not voting was a lack of awareness about the polls (37%). Circumstances, such as a 'lack of time' followed at 31%. Eight per cent said they were uninterested, seven per cent thought the elections were not important.
Over a quarter (28%) of people said they knew 'nothing at all' and 48% knew 'not very much' about what the PCC elections were about.
Over half (55%) of respondents found it difficult to access information about the candidates standing in the election.
The Home Office website, choosemypcc.org.uk, received over 1.9 million visits from 5 October - 15 November 2012. Over 122,000 people ordered printed candidate information. Taken together, and assuming every person who visited the website viewed relevant candidate information, this is equivalent to just 5.6% of the eligible electorate.
Jenny Watson, Chair of the Electoral Commission, said: "There were many different reasons why people didn’t vote last November and like any election there’s a limit to how much these can be addressed by decisions Government can make. But one of them was not knowing about the candidates and something can be done about that.
“It’s not enough to think that simply holding an election will inspire participation. That's why at the 2016 PCC elections a candidate information booklet must be sent to every household."
Late legislation
The report found that key pieces of legislation necessary for this election to happen were finalised very close to polling day. For example:
The Order specifying a bi-lingual ballot paper be used for the elections in Wales came into force on 31 October, just fourteen days before polling day. This delay meant that some Returning Officers printed both bi-lingual and English-only ballot papers in case the Order was not passed in time. In the event it was and the English-only ballot papers had to be destroyed. The cost to the taxpayer for these contingency measures was almost £135,000.
The Order setting out how much Returning Officers could spend to run and promote the elections locally came into force on 13 September, just three and a half weeks before the start of the election period. Guidance on funding from the Home Office only arrived four working days before the election.
The Electoral Commission recommends that:
The Home Office sets out by May 2014 how it will manage changes to the existing PCC legislation ahead of the next polls in 2016.
For any new elections which are proposed in future, the relevant Government should make clear at the time of introducing legislation how they will ensure that electors have appropriate access to information about candidates.
Jenny Watson added: “Elections are a cornerstone of our democracy. It’s vital that the rules surrounding them are clear, workable and in place in good time. The rules for these elections were confirmed unacceptably late causing confusion for candidates and electoral administrators. The Home Office doesn’t have experience in preparing for elections and they need to be better supported in future by the parts of Government that do.”
View from candidates
The Electoral Commission also conducted a survey of candidates that stood at the elections. It showed that:
Nearly half (44%) of all candidates said it was difficult to get the 100 signatures required for their nomination to stand. Three quarters (74%) of independents agreed / tended to agree with this.
Thirty nine per cent of candidates said it was difficult to raise the £5,000 deposit required for their nomination.
At a UK Parliamentary election, candidates only need ten signatures and a £500 deposit to secure their nomination. The Electoral Commission will shortly begin a review into whether there are unnecessary barriers to people standing as candidates at any elections. We will use these findings to inform our review which will be published later this year.
The report concluded that the elections were well run. They were delivered consistently across the 41 police force areas and public satisfaction with the administration of the elections was high. Returning Officers and their staff should be congratulated for this, particularly given late confirmation of funding.
However, some results were not declared until the evening of 16 November. Had turnout been higher, the declaration of results could have been even later. The Electoral Commission will support Returning Officers in reviewing their plans for managing the election count ahead of the next PCC elections.
