Independent Green Voice
Independent Green Voice is a minor far-right political party in Scotland. Founded by Alistair McConnachie, it was registered with the Electoral Commission in March 2003. Following the party's performance at the
2021 [Scottish Parliament election], there were suggestions that voters may have confused IGV with the Scottish Greens and voted for IGV in error. It was speculated that this could have cost the Scottish Greens two seats in the Scottish Parliament.
Overview
Independent Green Voice was founded by Alistair McConnachie, a far-right activist and former Scottish organiser for the UK Independence Party. UKIP refused to renew his membership for questioning the Holocaust. In 2012, McConnachie founded a pro-Union group called 'A Force for Good'. It was also reported that two candidates, Max Dunbar and John Robertson, were former British National Party activists.2021 Scottish Parliament
On 23 March 2021, the party a new emblem with the Electoral Commission that consists of an image of a leaf and the words "Independent Green Voice" in capital letters, with "Green" being in a larger font than "Independent" or "Voice". Following the results of the2021 Scottish Parliament election and the party's surprise performance, there were suggestions that voters may have confused IGV with the Scottish Greens and voted for IGV in error.
The Scottish Greens were 1,000 votes short of gaining a list seat in Glasgow and 100 votes short of gaining one in South [Scotland (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|South Scotland].
The Scottish Greens reported that they had complained to the Electoral Commission about the name when IGV was first registered, although reports note they did not raise concerns about the emblem prior to the election.
On 22 May 2021, the Electoral Commission ruled out a review of the name or emblem, stating "No concerns were raised with us in relation to this application to add an emblem to a long-registered party. We are satisfied that there are clear and sufficient differences between the two party's registered names, descriptions and emblems to avoid confusion."
The party stood in a by-election in Hillhead in April 2024, with the Scottish Greens again calling out IGV for "masquerading as a green voice".