Tory members ‘issued two ballots’ by mistake ahead of leadership vote
A number of Conservative members have received two ballot papers to vote for the next party leader and Prime Minister.
There are more than 1,000 members affected, the BBC has been told by a party insider.
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The Tory party warned voters that voting twice will mean they are expelled.
Ballot papers were this week dispatched to the around 160,000 members of the Conservative Party throughout the UK.
They will chose between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt to become the party and country’s leader, with the vote closing on 22 July and the result announced the following day
Some members, such as Sir Patrick McLoughlin, have received two ballots because they live and work in different constituencies and may have joined Conservative Associations in both areas.
“It doesn’t mean I vote twice, I don’t,” McLoughlin told the BBC.
When questioned whether the ballots needed heavier policing to prevent duplicates, Hunt’s campaign chief added: “It’s right there on the ballot paper saying you must only vote on one occasion and I expect people to do that.”
Other reasons could be to do with people who have changed their name, after marriage for example.
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Both the Tories and the independent body scrutinising the process have been unable to confirm how many ballots were sent in error.
The party insisted that: “The ballot holds clear instructions that members voting more than once will be expelled.”