A LABOUR-run council has been forced to delete a post encouraging people to vote in a by-election after it appeared to favour one party.
As the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election got under way on Thursday, South Lanarkshire Council posted a graphic on Twitter/X which featured a ballot paper with a cross beside a box saying “Vote”.
The post read: “You should vote using an X for your preferred candidate on your paper for the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election”.
However, the box was coloured red – the traditional colour of the Labour Party – leading one Glasgow City councillor to ask whether it was an appropriate graphic for the council to use.
Paul Leinster, the SNP councillor for Langside, said: “I wonder what Labour’s reaction would be if Glasgow City Council put out a graphic like this with the ‘Vote’ in yellow.”
The post was deleted shortly after questions were raised about its appropriateness.
A spokesperson for South Lanarkshire Council said: “This is one of a series of messages, using a wide variety of images and colours, including yellow, that is being used to inform people about the voting process.
"This one was deleted when a complaint was received. This was an entirely precautionary measure taken in order to reassure the complainer.”
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