Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was turned away from his local polling station when trying to cast his vote in Thursday’s elections after forgetting to bring the required photo identity, The Guardian reported.
Johnson was initially told by polling station staff he would not be allowed to vote in the police and crime commissioner election in South Oxfordshire without proving his identity.
The misstep was embarrassing for Johnson because the requirement to bring photo ID is a stipulation of the Elections Act he introduced in 2022 while in Downing Street, noted The Guardian.
The Electoral Commission has warned that hundreds of thousands of people could be excluded from voting because of the law, which it said could have a disproportionate effect on some groups.
A source close to Johnson confirmed he had forgotten the photo ID, but did later vote.
“Mr. Johnson voted Conservative,” a spokesperson added. Earlier on Thursday Johnson had posted on X: “The polls are now open. Vote Conservative!”
Johnson resigned as Conservative party leader in July of 2022, amid resignations by several of his ministers.
He was succeeded as Prime Minister by Liz Truss who resigned less than two months after taking office. Johnson contemplated running for the party leadership again after but ultimately decided against it, with Sunak taking over as Prime Minister.
Johnson quit as a lawmaker altogether in June of last year, after being told he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament.