GLENROTHES BY-ELECTION REGISTERS GO MISSING.

GLENROTHES BY-ELECTION REGISTERS GO MISSING.

Tricia Marwick MSP for Central Fife today (Tuesday) called for an inquiry
following the revelation that the marked electoral registers for the
Glenrothes By Election have gone missing.

The marked registers are the only record of who voted during the election
and were delivered to the Sheriff Clerk's Office in Kirkcaldy by the
Returning Officer at Fife Council. The marked registers must be kept for a
year and are made available for inspection by individuals and political
parties.

John Beare the Convener of the SNP in Central Fife first asked for the
marked registers in November and following numerous phone calls the
Sheriff Clerk's Office finally admitted on Friday that the records were
missing.

Tricia Marwick said:

"The marked registers are an essential element of any election campaign.

“They allow a check of who voted, but not how they voted, to confirm that
the election was conducted properly. Without these records there is no
evidence of either a fair or unfair election. This undermines the
confidence of everyone who took part.

"It is almost beyond belief that a by-election which attracted media
coverage throughout the UK, which delivered such a surprise result and had
a much higher turnout than anticipated now has no records to show who
actually voted.

"There now needs to be the fullest independent inquiry carried out.

“The registers must have gone missing almost immediately after they were
delivered to the Sheriff Clerk's Office because the SNP first asked for
copies on the 19th November. I also want to know why we were not told that
the registers had gone missing when we first started to make inquiries
about examining them."