Legal action threatened in Stoke after general election voting figures don’t add up

A third story of problems with election results earlier this month, to add to the one of the wrong person being elected and the candidate getting zero votes despite voting for themselves.

This time it is Stoke-on-Trent as the Stoke Sentinel reports:

Legal action is set to be taken by a defeated Parliamentary candidate over a ‘shambolic’ election count.

Conservative Joe Rich came second in the contest for Stoke-on-Trent South, where Labour’s Rob Flello retained his seat with a reduced majority of 2,539.

But following a recount on Friday morning there was still a discrepancy of 97 votes which could not be accounted for, which Mr Rich says casts doubt on the final result and he now wants a re-run…

It follows a catalogue of errors in North Staffordshire surrounding the election, including;

• The council appointing former legal officer Paul Hackney as acting returning officer due to delays in hiring a replacement before illness forced him to stand down just days before May 7
• Nearly 700 voters in two wards being reissued with postal ballots following a mistake
• A number of voters being left unaware of where they should vote after their polling cards never arrived
• Ballot boxes reportedly being found while the count was in progress
• Discrepancies between the number of ballot papers being issued compared to votes leading to recounts
• A mix-up with the ballot papers meant for Newcastle Borough Council’s Ravenscliffe ward, which forms part of the Stoke-on-Trent North Parliamentary constituency

Stoke has had previous problems with postal voting controversies.