Feeling anti-conservative in Britain? The notorious street artist Banksy is offering up complimentary prints as "souvenirs" for residents of six Bristol-area constituencies who send in photographic proof that they voted against the Tories. The eccentric and daring political gesture comes shortly after the English street artist laid claim to a large Brexit-related mural of a European flag being chiseled by a construction worker. The artist made the offer in a post on his website and social media pages, instructing registered voters in the Bristol North West, Bristol West, North Somerset, Thornbury, Kingswood, and Filton constituencies to prove proving they simply didn't vote for the incumbent Conservative candidate. On June 9th, the exclusive new print of a girl with a Union Jack flag balloon will be released to all eligible participants.
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This controversial political gesture seeks to challenge certain laws put in place to ensure that votes remain secret. As the BBC points out, Section 66 of the Representation of the People's Act states that it is a criminal offense to "induce a voter to display his ballot paper after he has marked it so as to make known to any person the name of the candidate for whom he has or has not voted." Crimestoppers, an independent UK crime fighting charity working with the Electoral Commission to combat electoral, warns on their website, "It's illegal to offer money or gifts to voters, directly or indirectly, to get someone to vote a certain way, or not to vote at all." Banksy's public offering comes along with a lawyer's footnote that attempts to evade any legal trouble by claiming the stunt, "is in no way meant to influence the choices of the electorate, has no monetary value, is for amusement purposes only and is strictly not for resale."UPDATE:
So, it turns out Banksy's plan to reward residents of Bristol counties for voting against the Tories is just as illegal as previously suspected. Nearly 18 hours ago, the artist announced a product recall for his election art giveaway in a note posted to his website and Instagram: "I have been warned by the Electoral Commission that the free print offer will invalidate the election result. So I regret to announce this ill-conceived and legally dubious promotion has now been cancelled." According to artnet News, police officials from counties like Avon and Somerset released a statement claiming they had received a number of complaints regarding the Banksy offer. A spokesperson for Police authorities said, "It is a criminal offense under the Representation of People Act 1983 for any voter to accept or agree to accept a gift or similar in return for voting or refraining from voting. Any person participating in an offer to receive a gift is at risk of being prosecuted."
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