Well, yes and no.
One of my 'past incarnations' had me train as a Parliamentary Agent for
one of the three largest English parties. Electoral law is really quite
arcane. But it's not a totally secret ballot. It's a practically secret
ballot. And the identification is there to allow the whole election to
be unravelled in the event of a large scale voting fraud.
From an HR point of view I would say that the limitations (i.e. from
being TOTALLY secret) are both necessary and proportionate.
A TOTALLY secret ballot would allow the possibility of the Executive
faking any result they liked!
Which is one of my fears of electronic voting.
Broom, Doreen wrote:
> Staff are not able to identify people from it. At the end of the night
> they are all sealed in envelopes/boxes and are kept for a year and then
> destroyed. In this Council they all go to the Sheriff Clerk's Office
> where they are locked away and the only way they are opened is if there
> is suspicion of an election fraud and the envelopes/boxes would be
> opened for that purpose.
>
>
>
> Candidates may obtain lists of people who voted but this does not
> identify who the person voted for.
>
>
>
> This is Friday for me as I shall be working at the election count and
> won't get to my bed until the early hours of tomorrow morning.
>
>
>
> D
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Tim Trent
> Sent: 03 May 2007 13:16
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: UK Elections and Secrecy
>
>
>
> I have just been to vote. I am a good boy, apparently. But I have a
> perennial rant about the alleged secrecy of UK elections.
>
>
>
> As is the norm, my electoral roll number has been logged against the
> numbered ballot papers I was given. Thus, after an act of parliament
> has been passed to investigate electoral corruption, my vote can be
> known and recorded against my name.
>
>
>
> We live in a good democracy and our parliament is not particularly
> corrupt, despite individual corrupt politicians, and, as such, this act
> is unlikely to be passed. But picture a less good democracy with the
> sudden rise to power of the neo Crypto Fascist Party.
>
>
>
> They do not like anyone who votes against them, and their new victory
> means that they pass this act and log all the votes. People are then
> questioned about their political beliefs, and some of them find the
> questioning harmful to health.
>
>
>
> Am I alone in finding this non anonymous system to be somewhat
> threatening? And also in what way does it comply with the sensitive
> data element of the DPA 1998?
>
>
>
>
> Tim Trent - Consultant
> Direct: +44(0)1344 392644 Mobile:+44(0)7710 126618
> Personal blog: http://timtrent.blogspot.com/
> <http://timtrent.blogspot.com/>
> See also http://complianceandprivacy.com
> <http://complianceandprivacy.com/>
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