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No selfie with ballot papers: Scotland Police

Wednesday, 06 May 2015 4:31 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 06 May 2015 4:31 PM ]

Ballot Box

Police and election officials in Scotland have warned voters against photographing their ballot papers on Election Day.

The intervention came after some pro-independence campaigners urged voters to photograph their ballot papers and follow ballot boxes to count centres on Thursday night, in an attempt to prevent their votes from being tampered with.

The campaign-dubbed Operation Scallop on Twitter and Facebook-allege that the results from last September’s independence referendum were tampered with. They claim that Thursday’s voting could also be rigged.

The Operation Scallop also advises people to follow the speed limit to ensure they are not stopped by police and not to behave in an aggressive manner. They are also urged to photograph anything they think is suspicious.

'CONSPIRACY THEORY'

Police and electoral officials said the claims must be considered “in the context of conspiracy theories after the referendum”.

“This is all in the context of the various conspiracy theories after the referendum and of the general suspicion out there among certain sectors of the public. The police are aware of this campaign as are the Electoral Commission.”

Police officers in Scotland’s 32 local authorities have been advised to watch for queues forming at polling stations and any disruptive behaviour.

Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission has told the police and polling station staff not to allow voters to take selfies as, depending on what is photographed in a polling station, they can be illegal.

“People are not encouraged and should not be allowed to take selfies, but obviously polling staff will need to make judgments about how or when they intervene with a view to their own safety and the efficient conduct of the poll...Given the risk that someone taking a photo inside a polling station may be in breach of the law, whether intentionally or not, our advice is that you should not allow photos to be taken inside polling stations.”

PHX

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