The British National Party candidate for Waddon was questioned by police over possible election fraud in 2006.Charlotte Lewis stood in the May elections for a ward in Sutton, despite living in Thornton Heath. Electoral rules dictate candidates must live or work in the borough they intend to represent, but Miss Lewis did neither. She had placed on her nomination form an address in Lind Road, Sutton, as her home residence – only for a London newspaper to expose the address as false. Miss Lewis claimed she was in a relationship with a resident at that address at the time but admitted she did not live there full time.
Speaking ahead of the Waddon byelection, Miss Lewis said she had been “taken advantage of” by a party organiser who has since left the organisation. She said: “It was down to the previous branch organiser. There was a guy who lived in Sutton who was supposed to stand but he disappeared. I was drafted in at the last minute. I very much regret what happened in 2006. I was taken advantage of and it won’t happen again. I am wiser and that person who cannot be trusted has gone.”
The 36-year-old said she had got confused as the Greater London Assembly constituency combines both Croydon and Sutton. She added: “I did not have time to familiarise myself with electoral law.”
Miss Lewis was questioned by the police at the time but the incident was not taken up by the electoral commission, nor the local council, and no charges were brought against her.
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She added: “I did not have time to familiarise myself with electoral law.”
ReplyDeleteYou and a lot more in the BNP....
"It was down to the previous branch organiser."
ReplyDeleteWhat, not Sadie Graham and the rest of the rebels??? That makes a change.
She's full of excuses isn't she.
ReplyDelete"The 36-year-old said she had got confused"
Dur.
"I did not have time to familiarise myself with electoral law."
ReplyDeleteI thought ignorance (and stupidity) was no defence. It's time the EC started jumping on the fraudulent would-be councillors and it's time the government made such fraud a criminal offence.
"ignorance and stupidity is no defence" nor is the truth in this nazi country.
ReplyDeleteFor a party which gets in such a high state of indignation over the alleged failings of the electoral system (sorry, that should read "ZANU-Labour's corrupt voterigging, postal vote frauding dictatorship") the BNP seems terribly easy-going over following the rules itself :
ReplyDeletesuch as,
people claiming dubious residential qualifications;
people claiming even more dubious work qualifications;
candidates withdrawing because they've been "misled" by local organisers;
people who have signed nomination papers claiming they were misled [BNP? I thought I was signing a petition for more police/ a zebra crossing/ free cakes all round]
or they might just be deceitful lying ba**ards !!
She must be taking lessons from the Dicky Barnbrook book of electoral law.
ReplyDeletetulip
ps. he still cant work out where he lives......
she was not charged
ReplyDelete"she was not charged"
ReplyDeleteWe can read. She should have been charged though.
"Charged" yes the midwife who delivered her should be.
ReplyDeletetulip