Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson praises villagers who turned him away when he attempted to vote without proper identification

Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, has expressed his gratitude to the villagers who denied him the right to vote when he tried to do so without a valid photo ID, citing rules he himself introduced.

The incident occurred during local elections in South Oxfordshire, where a police and crime commissioner for Thames Valley was being elected. Johnson, arriving at the polling station, presented a magazine sleeve with his name and address as proof of identity. However, he was promptly informed that this was insufficient.

In his Daily Mail column, Johnson wrote, “I want to pay a particular tribute to the three villagers who on Thursday rightly turned me away when I appeared in the polling station with nothing to prove my identity except the sleeve of my copy of Prospect magazine, on which my name and address had been printed. I showed it to them and they looked very dubious… within minutes I was back with my driving licence and voted Tory.”

The requirement to provide photo ID was implemented by Johnson’s government as part of the Elections Act 2022. However, this move sparked controversy and concerns that it would disenfranchise certain groups, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Thursday’s election marked the first time many voters in England and Wales had to present ID to vote, as part of provisions first introduced during last year’s local elections. Accepted forms of ID include driving licences, passports, proof of age cards, blue badges, and some concessionary travel cards.

The government has also committed to recognizing veterans’ ID cards as valid voter identification. Veterans’ minister Johnny Mercer issued an apology to those who were turned away and pledged to work towards adding the card to the list of accepted IDs. However, Labour criticized the government, pointing out that the veterans’ ID scheme began in 2019, giving them ample time to include it in the list of acceptable IDs