Fraudsters steal candidate's vote

Pennie Clarke, who is standing in Tower Hamlets, east London, called police after vote riggers forged her details to obtain fraudulent postal votes.

The Conservative councillor believes she is just one victim of a wider fraud in her area.

Police are already investigating alleged vote-rigging in seven London boroughs, including Tower hamlets.

Pennie Clarke advised anyone who suspects they have also been targeted to go to the Town Hall and cancel the postal votes, otherwise they will not be able vote.

She said her fiancé's application had also been forged.

Miss Clarke, a solicitor, said: "I received a letter from the local authority informing me that I had applied for a postal vote and that I would be receiving my postal papers shortly.

Forged signature

"But I hadn't requested a postal vote and I haven't received the papers.

"When I telephoned the election office they said I had made the application for a postal vote.

"This morning they faxed me that application and my fiancée's application."

The signature on her fiancée Phillip Snape's application had been forged.

"I just feel outraged because we have put in a lot of hard work and somebody is fiddling the system"
Pennie Clarke

On Miss Clarke's application her details had been filled in by someone else but there was no signature.

"The most surprising thing was that my application doesn't contain a forged signature but they have gone ahead and rubber stamped it anyway," she said.

"Now I'm going to have to go to the Town Hall tomorrow, when I should be out canvassing, to cancel this fraudulent vote."

If she had not spotted the fraud Miss Clarke would have found herself unable to vote.

"The same thing is happening to other residents," she said.

"I just feel outraged because we have put in a lot of hard work and somebody is fiddling the system."

Police have been investigating vote rigging in the London boroughs of Harrow, Kensington and Chelsea, Merton, Southwark, Hounslow, Tower Hamlets and Barnet.

West Midlands Police officers have also been investigating postal vote discrepancies.

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