Campaign Update: Hands off the Electoral Commission

If any political party or campaign organisation breaks the political finance laws at elections, it’s then up to the independent Electoral Commission to investigate. In recent years, they have, on at least one occasion, investigated and taken enforcement action against every major political party. 

Their independence has been secure - until now. The Conservative Party, unhappy at some of the Commission's recent rulings, is calling for the Electoral Commission’s powers to be reduced or abolished altogether. 

Unlock Democracy is fighting to prevent that. Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy and without an effective watchdog, we will see big and secretive money flowing into our politics.

The decision on the future of the Electoral Commission lies with the Cabinet Office Minister, Michael Gove. Since our campaign started in September, over 11,000 people have supported our campaign and have sent Mr Gove a strong message - hands off the Electoral Commission.

Unlock Democracy Director Tom Brake joined five other organisations in writing a public letter to Mr Gove which was covered in the Independent in late November. Unlock Democracy is planning to step up the campaign in the new year.

Unlock Democracy is going to target Mr Gove’s constituency with billboards and social media advertising. The message is simple - keep the Electoral Commission independent. If you haven’t already donated to help pay for these ads and would like to, you can visit our donate page here.

This is an important battle and with your support we will continue to grow our campaign in 2021. Thank you to everyone who has helped so far.