Tag: Toby S James
Elections and Covid-19: making democracy work in uncertain times
Erik Asplund and Toby James discuss the dilemmas countries around the globe face about holding or postponing elections during the pandemic, and set out some guidelines to follow in ensuring democratic participation remains fair and open during the crisis.
Who runs elections and how can they be improved? Independence, resources and workforce conditions are essential for good election management
In new research published today about how elections are run around the world, Toby S. James, Leontine Loeber, Holly Ann Garnett and Carolien van Ham find that organisational independence matters for well-run elections, and that election management could be improved with more resources, improved working conditions for election employees – and a better gender balance in electoral management bodies.
Are UK elections conducted with integrity, with sufficient turnout?
Across the world, there are many countries where elections take place but are rigged by governments or unfairly conducted. And even in core liberal democracies (like the United States) political parties have now become deeply involved in gerrymandering constituencies and partisan efforts at ‘voter suppression’. As part of our 2018 Democratic Audit, Toby S James looks at how well elections are run in the UK, and whether the systems for registering voters and encouraging turnout are operating effectively and fairly.
Audit 2017: How strong is the democratic integrity of UK elections? Are turnout, candidacies and participation maximised?
Across the world, there are many countries ‘where elections take place but are rigged by governments or unfairly conducted. And even in core liberal democracies (like the United States) political parties have now become deeply involved in gerrymandering constituencies and partisan efforts at ‘voter suppression’. As part of our 2017 Audit of UK Democracy, Toby S […]
Running elections: it’s an expensive job, and cash-strapped local authorities have to do it
Local authorities are responsible for running elections. But do they have enough money to do the job properly? Toby S James and Tyrone Jervier say the introduction of individual voter registration has made it much more expensive to compile the register. Authorities whose budgets have been cut are less likely to do public engagement and […]
Too late for GE2017 – but now universities will have to play a role in registering students to vote
It came too late for this general election – but Parliament has passed legislation that will mean that universities will again have to play a role in registering their students to vote. Toby S James, Chris Rennard and Josh Dell explain why this is likely to have a profound effect on young people’s turnout. Photo […]
Now they’re on a roll: how to get the missing millions onto the electoral register
Individual electoral registration has not been kind to students. Previously, they were automatically enrolled by their universities; now they are not, and many have fallen off the electoral roll as a result. But an amendment passed in the Lords last night would let them register at the same time as they enrolled at university. Toby […]
Voter ID is a risky reform when 8m people are already missing from the electoral register
In a 2018 pilot, voters in a few areas will have to show some sort of identification at the polls – a major change to voting arrangements. Yet voter fraud is not widespread in the UK. Toby S James welcomes the fact the plans will be extensively piloted, but warns they will lead to more voters being turned away […]
So much for #pencilgate: the referendum wasn’t rigged – but Britain’s electoral machinery needs fine-tuning
Despite widespread fears to the contrary, the EU referendum passed off without major problems. But the vote revealed underlying problems with Britain’s electoral system – most notably the difficulty of registering to vote. Toby S James and Alistair Clark, authors of a new report by the Electoral Commission on the quality of electoral administration at […]
The polling and registration process needs to be made simpler, more convenient and better resourced
The UK suffers from low electoral turnout, with young people in particular increasingly unlikely to turn out to vote in elections. At the same time, critics of our current electoral infrastructure highlight the risk of fraud. Here, Toby S. James, and Alistair Clark show that our polling and registration processes should be made simpler and […]
Democratic Audit's core funding is provided by the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. Additional funding is provided by the London School of Economics.