We know that politics is a difficult, and even dangerous, environment for women.
Political parties often highlight how they struggle to field women candidates, and many representatives are considering stepping down – all because of the extreme levels of misogynistic abuse and intimidation.
Ten years on from the tragic and senseless murder of Jo Cox there has, rightly, been an increasing focus from government and Parliamentary agencies on how women are increasingly being pushed out of our politics.
I have said before, though, I think more needs to be done to understand how survivors of domestic abuse are being either pushed out or locked out, of political and public participation.
We need to have survivors’ voices in our politics. The Courts, policing, workplaces and more have consistently been found to be letting down victims and survivors. If we’re to properly address these systemic failures, we need to hear from survivors, in their own words, and they need to be involved in policymaking.
MPs on a cross-party basis along with voluntary sector organisations across the VAWG and women’s rights sector are keen to support survivors to stand in elections – so that our lived experience can drive forward progressive social change. We know that to make this a reality, however, we need to empower survivors to stand with confidence that their safety will be upheld.
This is a key issue that I am seeking to address, when the Representation of the People Bill returns to the House next week, about how we can make sure that survivors’ safety and their legal protections are not overridden by perpetrators who may also stand as a candidate.
In the 2024 General Election, my ex-husband stood against me as a candidate after I had already endured years of post-separation harassment. I found out that he was running in my seat through the media and had just twenty minutes to decide before the nomination’s deadline closed, about whether I should continue with my re-election campaign.
The risks due to the candidacy were widespread. I was unable to attend some hustings, and advice had to be sought as to how the election count would be managed and how his rights to stand would not conflict with my rights to safety.
I would have to leave polling stations immediately when he would appear and I was left with no choice but to suspend campaigning early on Polling Day because the threat just could not be managed. I kept asking myself, what about my democratic right to stand?
There appeared to be little or no framework on how to manage the situation given that he was already confirmed as a candidate. From conversations I’ve had with survivors who have stood in elections, I know that the police have a very limited ability to manage these risks, and so we need to have frameworks for survivors undertaking public duties.
My amendments to this Bill, NC58 and NC59, seeks to ensure protections for domestic abuse survivors in elections. They would extend the disqualification orders created in the Elections Act 2022 – which already prevent offenders who have committed crimes motivated by hostility to candidates, campaigners, or representatives from holding elected office – to domestic abuse.
While these amendments would not necessarily apply to my own experiences, as it depends on a conviction or order having been secured, it extends the current legal framework to better cover domestic abuse. I hope that will provide survivors with assurances that, when taking the decision to stand for office, they would not be exposed to further post-separation harassment, as should be their democratic right.
Extending these disqualification orders is just one of the changes we need to bring in to make politics a safer place for survivors of abuse, and I hope that colleagues will back these amendments when the Bill returns to the House.
Written by Apsana Begum MP for Poplar and Limehouse.
Published on 12th July 2026