LONDON (AP) — The British government has announced contentious plans to toughen election voting rules by requiring photo identification at polling stations. The government says the move will protect the democratic system against electoral fraud. But opponents and civil liberties groups say the law proposed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative government could disenfranchise millions of voters, particularly the poor and members of ethnic minorities. Critics accuse the British government of overstating the scale of the problem. According to research by Parliament, there was one conviction in 2017 for impersonation at polling stations, and none in 2018. Voter ID has been a contentious issue in several U.S. states, where Republican administrations have sought to tighten voting laws.
