Where it all started

Our first year was defined by headline-grabbing global news stories about our whistleblowers Christopher Wylie and Shahmir Sanni.

First, Vote Leave’s now confirmed law-breaking in the EU referendum. Second, Facebook’s enabling of Cambridge Analytica to take the data of 87 million people without their consent. During these campaigns, we built lasting relationships with civil society organisations, democratic institutions, and policy experts.

Fair Vote UK was set up to tackle the issue of data misuse, voter manipulation and lack of transparency in elections head-on. We are committed to ensuring the institutions that protect our democratic processes are fit for purpose in a digital age. In our view, a safe and secure digital environment and a functioning modern democracy are two sides of the same coin: a society where regular people are free to make informed choices.

Since our founding, we’ve worked with Westminster, devolved governments, the European Union, and others to push for a common-sense platform of digital and democratic reform. We’ve pushed back on the UK government’s plans to implement voter ID and restrict the right to protest, and we’ve encouraged the UK to adopt an online safety regime fit for purpose. We’re using the experience and connections we gained from our early success to keep pushing for a fair and inclusive digital democracy.