George Galloway has been reported to the police over claims that he broke electoral law by tweeting an exit poll before voting had finished, according to an official in the Bradford West constituency.
Suzan Hemingway, the acting returning officer, said: “We have reported a tweet by George Galloway to the police who are dealing with the issue.”
It is understood that council officials were able to pass a screen grab of the tweet to West Yorkshire police after a complaint was made. The post was later removed.
A spokesman for the Respect politician said: “Apparently, he has been reported to the police by the returning officer. I am amazed that this is being taken seriously. It seems like a complete waste of police time.
He has retweeted a tweet from someone in New Jersey about a fictitious poll, it was not an exit poll. It is a storm in a thimble.”
The spokesman said he was not confident that Galloway would hold his seat. He said: “It looks like Labour is going to win. The count has only just started, but preliminary results suggest Labour will win.”
Galloway was elected at a byelection in 2012 with a majority of more than 10,000. The previous MP Labour MP, Marsha Singh, stood down because of health problems. He hailed his byelection victory as a “Bradford spring”.
A spokesman for West Yorkshire police refused to comment.
