Postal Voting And Fraud
MORI's research for The Electoral Commission during the 2005 General Election campaign shows that 46% think that electoral fraud is either a fairly big or very big problem in Great Britain. This compares to 69% of the public who say the same about false insurance claims and 79% who think benefit fraud is a problem.
The survey also looked at other aspects of voting by post, as well as assesing which factors people feel are most important when voting.
Topline Results
- MORI interviewed 1,009 British adults, aged 18+ by telephone between 29 April and 1 May 2005
- Data are weighted to reflect the national population profile
- An (*) indicates a finding of less than 0.5%, but greater than zero
- Where percentages do not add up to exactly 100% this may be due to computer rounding, the exclusion of "don't knows" or to multiple answers
Electoral Registration / Postal Voting
Q1-3 From what you know or have heard, how much of a problem, if at all, do you think the following types of fraud are in Great Britain? Is that very/fairly, not very/not at all?
| A very big problem | A fairly big problem | Not a very big problem | Not a problem at all | Don't know | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | |
| False insurance claims | 26 | 43 | 17 | 3 | 10 |
| Benefit fraud | 46 | 36 | 11 | 1 | 5 |
| Electoral fraud, that is fraud relating to elections and voting | 17 | 29 | 34 | 8 | 11 |
Q4 From what you have seen, heard or experienced, do you think that voting by post is ...
| % | |
|---|---|
| Very convenient | 35 |
| Fairly convenient | 37 |
| Neither convenient nor inconvenient | 13 |
| Fairly inconvenient | 7 |
| Very inconvenient | 5 |
| Don't know | 3 |
Q5 When it comes to being safe from fraud or abuse, would you say that voting in this way was ...
| % | |
|---|---|
| Very safe | 6 |
| Fairly safe | 30 |
| Neither safe nor unsafe | 14 |
| Fairly unsafe | 27 |
| Very unsafe | 19 |
| Don't know | 4 |
Q6 And how good or bad would you say that voting by post is in allowing people to vote in secret -- that is, without anyone else knowing how they voted? Would you say ...
| % | |
|---|---|
| Very good | 19 |
| Fairly good | 27 |
| Neither good nor poor | 17 |
| Fairly poor | 16 |
| Very poor | 12 |
| Don't know | 8 |
Q7 Thinking generally about elections, which one of the following would you say is most important for you when you vote at elections?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Voting being easy to do | 13 |
| Voting being convenient | 17 |
| My vote being safe from fraud or abuse | 33 |
| Voting being secret -- that is without anyone else knowing how I voted | 19 |
| Having a choice of methods to cast a vote (such as by post or in person at a polling station) | 13 |
| Other | 2 |
| None | 2 |
| Don't know | 2 |
Q8 Have you voted by post or intend to do so in the election on 5th May?
| % | |
|---|---|
| Yes, have voted by post | 10 |
| Yes, intend to vote by post | 10 |
| No | 79 |
| Don't know | 1 |
