SIR: On election day political parties station “tellers” at the entrance to polling stations to ask voters for their poll card registration numbers. The aim is to identify by elimination any supporters who have not yet voted in order to chase them up.
During the pandemic, we think voters might be put off from entering polling stations to vote if they have to get past several tellers asking them for their numbers. We don’t want tellers to put themselves or our residents at risk of infection. So, Winchester and Meon Valley Conservatives have decided to put democracy and safety first and not deploy tellers at the local elections in May.
We wrote to Labour, the Green party, and to the Lib Dems suggesting they follow our example. Labour readily agreed, the Greens have not replied, and the Lib Dems haven’t made up their mind.
Anne Pearson,
Deputy chairman (Political),
Meon Valley Conservative Association,
Jan Warwick,
Deputy chairman (Political)
Winchester Conservative Association,
Itchen Stoke,
Alresford
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