Local elections held last May were ‘free from major incidents of fraud’ according to a report published today by the Electoral Commission.

More than 16 million votes were cast at the local elections in England and Wales and for the London Mayor and London Assembly.

Of a total 103 cases of alleged electoral malpractice recorded, one case resulted in a conviction and nine resulted in a caution. In the vast majority, 82 cases or  81  percent police decided to take no further action. Thirteen cases are still under investigation or awaiting decision by the Crown Prosecution Service.

The Electoral Commission, working with the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) Police National Information and Co-ordination Centre, published the report following previous, high-profile incidents in Birmingham, Peterborough and Slough and there were no elections in which the outcome was challenged on the grounds of, or shown to have been affected by, incidents of electoral malpractice.

’It's important that when people cast their vote, they can have confidence that the electoral system is secure,’ said Jenny Watson, Chair of the Electoral Commission.

She said that previous high profile incidents influenced people’s ‘perception of the levels of fraud’ but things had now changed, highlighting new security checks for postal votes and new powers for Electoral Registration Officers to review registrations that they believe are suspicious.

’But there are still vulnerabilities in the system,’ she added, ‘and that is why we welcome the Government's commitment to move from the current outdated system reliant on the "head of the household" to a system of individual registration which gives us all the right to register to vote for ourselves. We will continue to work hard with the police to prevent and deal with any instance of electoral fraud.’

Allegations of electoral malpractice at the May 2008 elections in England and Wales