Democracy Volunteers has been observing elections in the UK for 10 years. We have seen ‘family voting’ across the UK and we think it is important to explain more about it and how it should be possible to limit or prevent it.
‘Family voting’, as it is generally called internationally, is when two people enter a polling booth together or one oversees the behaviour of another so that they know their voting choice. It is not only intimidation or direct control it is also oversight and collusion, and it is a breach of the secret ballot.
What is the secret ballot? Introduced in 1872, the secret ballot removed the public declaration of a voter's intention. Previously, voters were required to announce or evidence by showing through hands, who they were supporting. As a consequence of open voting, men who rented their homes, or relied on a local employer for work, had to vote as the property owner or employer wished them to vote (The Gazette).
Democracy Volunteers observed the electoral process in 204 Westminster parliamentary constituencies across the UK. The organisation deployed two or more observers to each constituency. In total, the number of observers, experts and support staff was over 200 at this election.
As part of Democracy Volunteers’ election observation for the 2025 English Local Elections, held on May 1st, the team worked with students from Manchester University to assess the impact on local election candidates because of the threats they receive.
Our team wrote to over 2,000 candidates, across parties, to see...
'Today we have seen concerningly high levels of family voting in Gorton and Denton. Based on our assessment of today’s observations, we have seen the highest levels of family voting at any election in our 10 year history of observing elections in the UK.' (Dr. John Ault)
This year, Democracy Volunteers celebrates a decade of independent election observation. Since our founding in 2015, we have grown to become Western Europe’s leading election observation organisation, working at home and abroad to improve the quality of elections and to strengthen public confidence in the democratic process.
Democracy Volunteers celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2025, marking a decade of independent election observation. Since our founding in 2015, the organisation has monitored more than 200,000 voters across 13,000 polling stations and influenced reforms such as the Ballot Secrecy Act 2023.
Democracy Volunteers deployed observers across the Netherlands for the parliamentary elections in October. Deploying 32 observers and experts, 25 of whom were based in the European Netherlands and the...
In September 2025, Democracy Volunteers deployed an international observation mission to assess the conduct of Norway’s Parliamentary Elections. A team of 24 trained observers independently monitored voting and counting...
The UK’s overseas postal voting system is failing — extended enfranchisement without operational capacity has created a perfect storm of lost ballots, tight timetables and systemic disenfranchisement.
Democracy Volunteers has today described Finland’s municipal and county elections as “extremely well-run,” citing high standards in the running of polling stations and good accessibility across polling stations.
Democracy Volunteers has released the report on the 2025 English local elections, held on May 1st. The team deployed observers across every area in England holding elections, with the exception...
Democracy Volunteers has links to many international observer groups, which it tries to support and cooperate with to help improve election observation and also to support those where election...
Italy does not allow domestic election observation, leading to concerns about transparency and public oversight in one of the European Union’s founding democracies.
Democracy Volunteers Director, Dr John Ault said:...
Democracy Volunteers was represented at the Canadian Vote Summit 2025 by our Director, Dr John Ault, who attended the event in Montreal from 20–21 May. Organised by the Canadian-based...
The team at Democracy Volunteers has today condemned the Russian government for imprisoning Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of the Russian election observation group GOLOS, to five years...
From Kent in the South East to Lancashire in the North West and from Northumberland in the North East to Cornwall in the South West, Democracy Volunteers deployed election...
On April 13th, Democracy Volunteers deployed 16 observers across Finland for the municipal and county elections. The team visited the cities of Helsinki, Espoo, Rauma, Turku, Pori, Kotka, Tampere...