By Henry Nwaneri
Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was not allowed to vote by a polling station staff because he forgot to bring his photo ID to the polling station.
The requirement to provide a photo ID was introduced by Johnson during his time in Downing Street as part of the Elections Act 2022.
It is understood Johnson was later able to cast his vote.
Thursday’s election marked the first time many voters in England and Wales have had to present ID to vote under provisions first rolled out at last year’s local elections.
The government has also said it intends to make veterans’ ID cards a valid form of voter identification after former service personnel were also turned away from polling stations.
Veterans minister Johnny Mercer apologised to those unable to use their veterans’ ID card to vote in the local elections on Thursday, vowing to “do all I can” to have it added to the list of valid identification.
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The government is making consultations on adding the new Veteran Card to the list of acceptable voter IDs, which already includes armed forces identity cards.
Mercer’s apology came after Army veteran Adam Diver complained he had been turned away from his local polling station after presenting his Veteran Card.
Diver, 48, had been looking to place his vote in Fleetwood, Lancashire, but was turned away after presenting his card, saying the experience left him feeling “gutted”.
“I felt clearly deflated, I felt gutted to be fair and upset – I felt angry at the point,” Diver, who served in the Army for 27 years, told the PA news agency.
“I felt like my time served was invalidated and I just thought to myself, ‘What was the point in that?’
“I’ve served in pretty much every war going; I’ve spent 27 years away from my family.
“I thought you could use it as an ID card. It’s like a driving licence, you can’t get any more official and it didn’t strike me one bit that it wouldn’t be validated.”
