Our outdated and fragmented electoral law must be consolidated
4 min read
Free and fair elections, and the law underpinning them, are part of the UK’s critical national infrastructure.
As the threats facing that infrastructure evolve, it’s vital that we adapt our defences, and that must extend to the safeguards around elections too. Yet the laws that determine how our elections are run are fragmented, outdated, and increasingly putting well-run elections at risk.
These laws determine who can vote, how candidates and campaigners must behave, how elections are delivered and how wrongdoing is addressed.
They are spread across at least 25 major statutes and are the responsibility of three legislatures. Decades of piecemeal amendments by successive governments have produced ambiguity, gaps and inconsistencies.
The Representation of the People Bill, currently in the House of Lords, promises to bring real benefits to the electoral system, supporting greater participation and protecting the system from foreign interference. But it will add yet another layer of complexity.
In Wales, a voter in the Senedd elections checking their right to vote and how to register would have had to navigate at least ten laws passed by Westminster and the Senedd
Those participating in or running elections already have a bewildering amount of legislation to navigate: at England’s local government elections in May 2026, Returning Officers had to consult twelve pieces of primary legislation and fifteen pieces of secondary legislation on electoral administration. We know firsthand from our conversations with Returning Officers that they need to be able to make decisions quickly, sometimes within minutes, particularly on polling day. However, with information spread across so many different sources, decision-making can become inefficient and complex.
In Wales, a voter in the Senedd elections checking their right to vote and how to register would have had to navigate at least ten laws passed by Westminster and the Senedd. This makes it harder for voters to exercise their democratic rights and requires a huge amount of time and expertise on the part of administrators. Even making simple changes to the voting process can require disproportionate legislative amendment – for example, adding the Veterans ID card to the list of accepted voter identification required a 76-page statutory instrument.
It’s right that elections are governed by detailed legislation, but the complexity that has now built up over time reduces transparency and makes it harder to scrutinise the rules governing democratic participation. It creates barriers for voters, especially those who are vulnerable, and raises the risk of error among those running or contesting elections.
Inconsistencies can also create loopholes in the political finance system and expose candidates and campaigners to an increased risk of unintended non-compliance. For instance, the start dates for some controls are not clear and are inconsistently explained in law. In the case of candidate donations, controls begin on the day someone becomes a candidate, while controls on candidate spending begin the following day. There is no compelling reason for that divergence, yet candidates and agents must understand and comply with it. Such anomalies complicate enforcement and risk weakening confidence in the fairness of the system.
There is growing consensus about the need for consolidation of electoral law; it has been recommended by multiple select committees, the then Committee on Standards in Public Life, and the UK’s Law Commissions. The evolving threats to our democracy – from misinformation, foreign interference, and declining participation and trust – make the case more pressing than ever.
Electoral law consolidation is an investment in protecting the UK against these threats, upholding electoral integrity, improving accessibility, strengthening our resilience and maintaining public confidence. A modern framework would reduce duplication and burden, improve parliamentary scrutiny and close exploitable gaps.
Consolidation will be a significant undertaking, requiring time and expertise. The government has been clear that it recognises the need for consolidation, but it has not yet found its way high enough up the list of priorities to be actioned. This needs to change. Now is the time to begin with purpose, establish a clear route forward and build the cross-party and cross-institutional commitment required to tackle the full consolidation of electoral law.
The Electoral Commission stands ready to support governments and legislatures across the UK to begin that work. Democracy depends not only on the rules being sound, but on people being able to follow, understand and trust them.
John Pullinger is Chair of the Electoral Commission
