Two arrests over allegations of fraud relating to Conservative Party nomination paper
The Norwich Evening News reports:
Norfolk police arrested two men at an address in Norwich … following an allegation around the signatures for the nomination for the Conservative candidate in Mancroft ward.
Police said [they] had been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit election fraud, specifically conspiracy to submit nomination papers containing fraudulent signatures.
The Conservative candidate for Mancroft ward was Iain Gwynn, but it is understood he is not one of the men who has been arrested.
In England (unlike in Scotland), the signatures of ten people on the electoral register are required for a local council nomination paper.
The two arrested ironically look to have been Norwich-wide Conservative Party activists with experience of agenting elections.
While of course no-one should prejudge the outcome of the investigation, if it’s true it’s extraordinary. How hard is it for a candidate of the biggest party in terms of electoral support, or for his agent, to get ten genuine signatures from the people of the ward?