From the Australian:
Many more details here.WIDESPREAD voter anger has marred the British election, with thousands of people being deprived of their right to vote as polling stations were unable to cope with demand.David Monks, chief returning officer for England, told The Times the widespread failures to deal with high voter turnout may lead to by-elections in the next few weeks as disenfranchised citizens challenge results.Some protested in the streets at being unable to vote because of queues when polling stations closed at 10pm.British Electoral Commission head Jenny Watson said it would investigate but that "we’ve been saying for some time that the system we have is at breaking point".The Conservatives said reports of the queues were "disturbing" and must be "thoroughly investigated".And Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown was "very concerned" about the reports of people being turned away from polling stations and "would support a thorough investigation into them", according to his spokesman.The Labour Party also said 600 people were missing from the electoral roll in Chester, despite having registered.An estimated 500 would-be voters were turned away in Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg’s constituency of Sheffield Hallam and another 200 people in Woodseats, a Sheffield suburb five miles away, were told their votes would not count.Voters gathered outside Mr Clegg’s home and he apologised for the problems.Police were called to deal with angry people prevented from voting in several areas including in Brockley and Hackney in London.
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