Selfie-taking voters in Havering may be in breach of election law
Joan Collins takes a selfie with Sam Bailey, Pixie Lott, Vernon Kay, Dominic West, Patrick Kingsley, Jeremy Irons and Jools Holland at a Prince's Trust event in Leicester Square (Photo: Twitter) - Credit: Archant
Voters have been warned against posting selfies when inside polling booths - even though it is not against the law.
The craze for selfies has become more prominent than ever this year after several celebrities took high-profile pictures at star studded events.
Now the Electoral Commission fears the trend of taking self-portraits with your phone camera may creep into the voting station and threaten the secrecy of the ballot.
Anyone who inadvertently reveals how someone else votes in Thursday’s local and European elections could face a £5,000 fine or six months in prison.
A Havering Council spokesman said: “The Electoral Commission has made it clear the law relating to obtaining information in polling stations and disclosing such information is complex and that someone taking a photo inside a polling station may be in breach of the law.
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“The advice is that no photographs should be taken inside polling stations and we have displayed notices to that effect at all 134 polling stations in Havering.”
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