Day Britain went to the polls
Our ballot boxes turn out to be in some of the strangest places
THERE are no democratic rights or wrongs when it comes to selecting a polling station.
Any building will do – from a caravan to a laundry – and voters flocked to an eccentric array of makeshift locations yesterday.
It was thirst past the post at The White Horse at Priors Dean, Hants, where voters headed for the bar.
In Garthorpe, Leics, electors made their choice in a caravan on Grange Farm. Another polling station was set up in a train carriage at Leeming Bar, North Yorks.
And in Headington, Oxon, voters had to use a laundrette.
There were some surprises outside the booths, including a lizard, Elmo the Muppet, even a bride and groom.
Dale Shirlow and Sorcha Eastwood left their wedding bash to vote in West Belfast, where the bride was an Alliance Party candidate.
She said: “It’s been a lot to do and a lot to take in but my family have been fantastic.”
Her plans were almost wrecked at the weekend when she was bitten by a dog on the campaign trail, resulting in a two-day stay in hospital.
Voter Phil Heard rode his horse, Ranger, to the ballot box at Meldon Village Hall in Okehampton, Devon.
And there were the usual pictures of loyal pets waiting outside as #dogsatpollingstations became the UK’s third top Twitter trend. But
Scott Gavin took along Thor, his pet Bosco Lizard, as he cast his vote in Kirkby, Merseyside.
Fathers’ rights protester Bobby Smith, of Stevenage, demonstrated outside a polling station in Maidenhead, Theresa May’s constituency – with his mum Sheila Doyle-Smith, 59, dressed as Elmo the Sesame Street Muppet.
The recent terror attacks led to beefed-up security. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D’Orsi admitted the election was taking place in “unprecedented times”.
Ms D’Orsi, who co-ordinated election day protection, said: “Security around polling stations is constantly being reviewed and updated by local police forces.
“The general threat level remains at severe, so we continue to ask the public to be alert and report any concerns to police.”
The weather is not thought to have deterred voters from heading to the ballot boxes – despite rain and wind hitting parts of the country.
Several would-be voters were turned away in Plymouth, despite having polling cards. People at stations across the city were told they weren’t on the electoral roll.
Anthony Prynn, who has lived in the same house for 32 years and voted at every general election, said: “This is a joke.”