These numbers make the voting ID rule hard to justify
The voting ID requirement was one of three changes Johnson brought in without going through the normal process on voting system changes of trying to get a consensus with other parties.
The first was the introduction of compulsory voter ID for those voting in person and we will see in the local elections how that plays out. The evidence from the trials is that it does reduce turnout but not by that much. Whether it will help the Tories we will have to look at the detail of this week’s election outcomes.
The second measure was the abolition of the “supplementary vote” in Mayoral and PCC elections – something that has existed for nearly a quarter of a century.
The third was to water down the powers of the Electoral Commission so it no longer operates independently and could have proved an obstacle with the first two BoJo changes.
This all makes it easier for a future non-CON government to make changes that it feels will help it electorally.