Labour members and supporters have begun protesting to the party about their lack of ballot papers with less than a week to go before the leadership election closes. The party initially promised that 99.9% of its electorate would have received ballot papers by 28 August, but it is now refusing to disclose how many of the 554,000 have been sent out. A initial batch of 340,000 was dispatched on 14 August, and a second batch of 170,000 voters should have received their ballots between 21-26 August. That would have left a final batch to receive their voting instructions by email by Friday 28 August. However, with just four and a half working days until the ballot closes at midday next Thursday, many have taken to social media to complain to the party about worries that they could be disenfranchised in the contest.
A Labour spokesman said there was no need for people to worry because the process of sending out ballot papers is “still under way, and people can vote online right up to the deadline on 10 September.”
However, senior party figures, including Jeremy Corbyn, a leadership candidate, and Sadiq Khan, a candidate for London mayor, have urged people to contact the party for their papers to be reissued if they have not received them.
The Guardian office has taken a number of phone calls from members concerned that their ballot papers have not arrived.
Full Article: Labour members complain about missing leadership ballot papers | Politics | The Guardian.