The Reform UK promises a major shake-up of voting rules (Image: SmartFrame/Zuma Press)
Postal voting will be banned in many cases and only “naturalised British citizens” will be able to take part in parliamentary elections under a Reform UK Government, Nigel Farage has pledged. Reform claims current rules which allow resident Commonwealth citizens to vote if they meet certain conditions has led to UK elections being fought on “international issues”.
Postal voting would only be allowed under “tightly defined exemptions” for “the elderly, the disabled, serving armed forces personnel, and those working overseas during an election”.
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Mr Farage said: “For too long, postal voting has allowed our elections to be turned into a laughing stock, riddled with fraud, intimidation and outright cheating. It’s been allowed to go on for years and has poisoned trust in our democracy. Meanwhile, allowing non-Brits – people with zero connection to this country – vote on our future is absurd. It is right that only British citizens should be able to vote in British parliamentary elections. That’s why a Reform government will immediately ban wholesale postal voting and ensure only British citizens can vote in elections in order to bring back trust to British democracy.”
According to the Electoral Commission, a Commonwealth citizen can register to vote if he or she has leave to enter or remain in the UK, or does not require that leave.
Citizens of Fiji and Zimbabwe retain their voting rights even though the countries have been suspended from the Commonwealth.
The Electoral Commission reports there is “no evidence of large-scale electoral fraud”. It states on its website: “Of the 1,318 cases of alleged electoral fraud reported to police between 2020 and 2024, eight led to convictions and the police issued three cautions.”
Matt Goodwin was Reform’s candidate in Gorton and Denton (Image: PA)
Reform has gone to the police after election observer group Democracy Volunteers warned there were “concerningly high levels” of “family voting” during the Gorton and Denton by-election. This is an illegal practice where two voters use one polling booth and may direct each other how to vote.
Shadow Local Government Secretary Sir James Cleverly has also requested the Electoral Commission stage an inquiry.
Democracy Volunteers reported its observers witnessed family voting in 15 of 22 polling stations observed. Reform finished second in the by-election, with the Greens taking the seat from Labour.
Conservative chairman Kevin Hollinrake expressed alarm at the Reform proposals, saying: ““We must safeguard our elections with proportionate, evidence-based reforms, not headline grabbing measures that could lock law-abiding voters out of our democratic process.”
Nigel Farage Pledges Postal Voting Ban and End to Commonwealth Voting Rights
Nigel Farage has put electoral reform at the centre of Reform UK’s political programme, pledging sweeping changes to postal voting and proposing an end to the voting rights currently enjoyed by qualifying Commonwealth citizens.
The proposals would represent a significant change to the rules governing elections in Britain. Reform says its objective is to restore public confidence in the electoral system and ensure that parliamentary elections are decided by British citizens, while critics argue that restricting access to postal voting and changing the franchise would exclude some people who are currently legally entitled to participate.
Farage first set out the proposals in the aftermath of the Gorton and Denton by-election, where Reform candidate Matt Goodwin finished second behind Green candidate Hannah Spencer. Reform subsequently made the proposals part of a broader “Election Integrity Bill”.
Under the plan, postal voting would no longer be available as a general option for registered voters. Instead, Reform has proposed limiting postal ballots to groups including elderly and disabled people, members of the armed forces, diplomats and people working overseas or those who are genuinely unable to vote in person.
Danny Kruger, the Reform MP for East Wiltshire, later defended the proposal by arguing that people who simply choose to be away from their constituency on polling day should normally vote in person. He described postal voting as an exception for people who are unable to reach a polling station.
That would mark a substantial departure from the current system.
How postal voting works now
At present, eligible voters in Great Britain can apply for a postal vote for parliamentary elections and various other elections. The government’s current online service allows people to apply for a postal ballot for a specific election or, subject to the rules, for a longer period. Voters who are abroad during an election can also apply for a postal vote, although proxy voting can be used where there is insufficient time for a ballot to be sent and returned.
The Electoral Commission has also introduced safeguards around postal voting in recent years.
Postal voters must provide identifying information when applying, including their National Insurance number or other accepted identity documentation, as well as a handwritten signature. There are also restrictions on who can handle completed postal ballots.
At UK parliamentary elections, campaigners and candidates cannot simply collect and deliver other people’s postal votes. There are limits on how many ballots an individual can hand in, while campaigners are restricted largely to their own postal vote and those of close relatives or people they regularly care for.
The government itself is proposing changes to the postal system, but those changes are designed around administration and resilience rather than abolishing widespread postal voting.
The Representation of the People Bill includes measures intended to improve the processing of applications, allow postal ballots to be reissued more flexibly and make it easier for voters to switch voting methods when circumstances threaten their ability to cast a ballot. The government has described the changes as an effort to strengthen the system.
Reform’s proposal therefore goes considerably further.
Farage’s argument about electoral trust
Farage has argued that postal voting has contributed to declining confidence in elections. Reform has portrayed the system as vulnerable to fraud, intimidation and improper influence.
The proposals emerged at a particularly contentious political moment.
Following the Gorton and Denton by-election, Reform reported allegations of “family voting” to the police. The term refers to situations in which voters may confer, collude or direct one another while casting ballots.
The Electoral Commission said allegations of electoral offences should be taken seriously and encouraged anyone who believed an offence had taken place to report it to the police.
However, allegations surrounding one election should not automatically be treated as proof that postal voting across Britain is fraudulent. The two issues are related politically in Reform’s argument, but they are not the same thing legally or procedurally.
Farage has nevertheless used the controversy to argue that stronger safeguards are necessary.
His position is that if problems can occur inside polling stations, there should also be concern about the possibility of pressure or coercion affecting postal voters outside polling stations.
The Commonwealth voting proposal
The second major element of Reform’s electoral programme concerns nationality.
Under current law, qualifying Commonwealth citizens can vote in UK parliamentary elections if they meet the relevant registration and eligibility requirements. The same nationality category also applies to local government elections in England.
The rules are more complicated than simply allowing every Commonwealth citizen to vote.
A qualifying Commonwealth citizen must satisfy the relevant legal requirements, including immigration and registration conditions. The Electoral Commission lists countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Australia, Canada, Jamaica, New Zealand, South Africa and Ghana among the Commonwealth states whose qualifying citizens can meet the nationality requirement.
Reform wants to change that system.
An amendment tabled in Parliament would replace the reference to “Commonwealth” citizens in the Representation of the People Act with “British” citizens for parliamentary elections, while allowing British or Irish citizens to remain eligible under the proposed wording for local elections in England and Wales.
The amendment was sponsored by a number of Reform MPs, including Richard Tice, Lee Anderson, Sarah Pochin and Danny Kruger. It was debated but not put to a vote.
That distinction is important: the proposal is not currently law.
For now, qualifying Commonwealth citizens remain entitled to register and vote if they meet the existing requirements.
Why the issue has become politically important
Farage has linked the proposed franchise changes directly to questions about national sovereignty.
His argument is that parliamentary elections should determine the political direction of Britain and therefore should be decided only by British citizens, with an exception retained for Irish citizens.
That represents a change from the historic franchise, which has long reflected Britain’s constitutional relationship with Commonwealth countries.
The House of Commons Library explains that Britain is unusual internationally in allowing certain non-British citizens to vote in UK parliamentary elections. Under the current rules, the electorate includes British citizens, Irish citizens and qualifying Commonwealth citizens.
Reform’s proposal would therefore change a longstanding feature of British electoral law.
Supporters of the idea can frame it as a citizenship-based definition of the national electorate. Opponents can argue that people who legally live in Britain and currently qualify to vote would lose an established democratic right.
Those are fundamentally different approaches to defining the franchise.
Farage and the Gorton and Denton controversy
The timing of Reform’s proposals is also closely connected to the Gorton and Denton result.
Green candidate Hannah Spencer won the by-election, with Reform’s Matt Goodwin in second place and Labour third. Reform subsequently raised allegations concerning voting practices.
Farage argued that the result demonstrated problems with the current electoral arrangements and said that Reform would pursue changes to voting rules.
He also argued that Reform would have performed differently if only British citizens had voted. That was a political assertion about the composition of the electorate rather than an official recalculation of the election result.
The distinction matters because the official result remains the official result regardless of voters’ nationality unless an election is legally overturned.
The Electoral Commission’s role is also separate from that of political parties. It oversees the electoral system and provides guidance, while allegations of criminal electoral offences are matters for law-enforcement authorities.
What a Reform government would have to do
Even if Reform entered government, neither proposal would automatically become law simply because it appeared in a party programme.
Changing the parliamentary franchise would require legislation through Parliament. Restricting postal voting would similarly require changes to the existing legal framework.
That means the practical outcome would depend on parliamentary numbers, the wording of legislation, amendments, legal challenges and the final votes in both Houses.
Farage has indicated that Reform would move rapidly on its programme if elected.
At the party’s September conference, he said Reform intended to declare a national emergency and use Parliament intensively to pass its proposed programme. He also argued that his government would take measures to overcome institutional obstacles to its agenda. These remain political proposals rather than enacted changes.
A broader debate about democracy
The argument over postal voting and Commonwealth voting rights reflects a larger debate about what British democracy should look like.
One side of that debate focuses on accessibility and participation. Postal voting allows people who cannot easily attend polling stations to take part, including people who are abroad, have mobility difficulties or face other practical obstacles.
The other focuses on security, verification and the relationship between citizenship and political rights.
Britain has already tightened aspects of its electoral system through voter identification requirements and changes to postal and proxy voting. Reform is proposing to go substantially further by reducing the circumstances in which postal voting is available and changing the nationality requirements for parliamentary elections.
The political significance of the proposals therefore extends beyond Reform itself.
If enacted, they would alter who can participate, how people can cast their ballots and the relationship between British citizenship and political representation.
For now, however, the existing rules remain in force. Qualifying Commonwealth citizens continue to have voting rights under current law, while eligible voters can continue to apply for postal ballots subject to the existing requirements.
Farage’s proposals have opened a major argument about electoral integrity, citizenship and access to the ballot box. Whether those ideas eventually become legislation will depend not only on Reform’s political programme, but on the parliamentary process that would be required to turn those proposals into law.