Councillor cautioned for voting tWice in elections
A COUNCILLOR who voted twice in a local election said he didn’t know it was illegal.
Faisal Rana has accepted a police caution after admitting electoral fraud.
The Rochdale Council Labour member for Spotland and Falinge insists he ‘didn’t realise’ that casting votes in two wards in the same council borough was an offence. He said he ‘misinterpreted’ the rules. Coun Rana, who owns ‘multiple properties,’ was registered in Spotland and Falinge and in Norden. It is presumed he voted for himself in his ward, which is allowed, although the town hall said that information is confidential. Although the wards are in different Parliamentary constituencies – his is classed as Rochdale, while Norden is within the boundary of Heywood and Middleton – they are both part of the Rochdale council area.
Electoral Commission rules clearly state that if you are registered in two different local authority areas, you can vote twice – once for each council.
You cannot vote twice at the same local council poll, as Coun Rana did.
He took 56 per cent of the vote in Spotland and Falinge before being made assistant finance portfolio holder.
He has now ‘stepped away’ from his cabinet responsibilities. Amid calls for Coun Rana to stand down, town hall chief Allen Brett said: “It is vital that councillors do all they can to uphold the integrity of the democratic process. As soon as he became aware of this, Coun Rana stepped away from his cabinet responsibilities.”
He added: “Naturally, I am disappointed in Coun Rana’s error because he is a very talented and hardworking individual who shares our collective passion to improve our borough.”
In a statement, Coun Rana said: “I have accepted a police caution for an electoral offence, which relates to me casting separate votes for two different wards in two different constituencies [Spotland and Falinge and Norden Ward] in the local elections earlier this year. I did not realise this was an offence and misinterpreted the rule that says it is possible to vote in two different electoral areas.”
Coun Rana said he had attended a police station for a voluntary interview and co-operated fully with the investigation, adding: “I sincerely apologise for this genuine mistake to my ward constituents, the council, the local Labour group and my colleagues.”
Rochdale’s Lib Dem chief Andy Kelly described Coun Rana’s punishment as ‘lenient’ and called for him to stand down.