In the aftermath of the Gorton and Denton by-election, allegations of 'family voting' – a form of electoral fraud where family members collude in the voting booth – briefly dominated political discourse. Nigel Farage and others on the right seized on claims by the observation group Democracy Volunteers, which reported seeing it in 15 of 22 polling stations. However, Greater Manchester Police investigated and found 'no evidence of any intent to influence or refrain any person from voting'. The controversy, Taj Ali argues in a new Guardian documentary, reflects a deeper narrative that Muslims cannot be trusted with democracy.
Ali, who has been speaking to Muslim voters across the country, concludes that the rise of the Green Party and independent candidates – such as those who defeated Labour in the 2024 election – has nothing to do with family voting, Muslim sectarianism or clan politics. Instead, it is about the disintegration of Labour's historical base, as voters feel taken for granted. 'Only, this time, it’s not the white working class taking its votes elsewhere, but the rest of the working class,' he writes.
Ali acknowledges that problematic electoral politics, such as clan-based biraderi networks, have existed among British Muslims. Originating in the Indian subcontinent, biraderi provided vital support for Pakistani migrants in the 1970s but later led to candidates being selected based on family and village ties rather than merit. However, he insists this has no bearing on the current political realignment. In conversations with Asian women in Gorton and Denton, he found their anger focused on issues like potholes, traffic and litter – not clan loyalty.
The documentary, 'The Muslim Vote: Democratic threat or Islamophobic myth?', airs on Thursday 30 April. It challenges the notion that Muslim voters are a monolithic bloc or a threat to democracy, arguing instead that their behaviour reflects the same democratic choices made by any other group.
