Donald Trump's campaign has accused British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party of "blatant foreign interference" in the US presidential election, following reports that some Labour volunteers travelled to assist Kamala Harris' campaign. Trump’s team has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in Washington, calling for an investigation into what they claim are illegal contributions from Labour to Harris’ campaign. The complaint centres on concerns that Labour’s involvement may have breached US election laws. It’s common for British political volunteers to participate in US elections, with Labour Party activists typically supporting the Democrats and Conservative Party members backing Republicans. Unnamed British officials told Reuters that some senior Labour advisers had recently met with Democrat strategists following Labour’s landslide election win in July. The meetings reportedly focused on how Labour reclaimed former industrial heartlands that had turned away from the party in 2019. Starmer, however, downplayed concerns, insisting that Labour supporters were volunteering in a personal capacity and that this issue would not affect UK-US relations if Trump were re-elected on 5 November. Greg Swenson, chairman of Republicans Overseas UK, acknowledged Trump’s unpredictable nature but expressed confidence that the incident was unlikely to harm his relationship with Starmer if Trump returns to office. Rules on foreign campaign involvement Under US election law, foreign nationals are allowed to volunteer for campaigns but are prohibited from making financial contributions. The allegations hinge on whether Labour paid for any volunteers’ travel or other expenses. The complaint cites media reports and a now-deleted LinkedIn post by Sofia Patel, Labour’s head of operations, who indicated that nearly 100 Labour staff were set to travel to the US to help elect Harris. Patel’s post also mentioned that housing arrangements would be sorted. Labour denied any wrongdoing, stating that any party members involved were volunteering in their own time, with accommodation provided by other volunteers. The FEC previously fined Bernie Sanders’ campaign after Australia’s Labour Party funded the flights and food for its volunteers during Sanders’ presidential bid. In a statement, Trump’s team called for an immediate investigation, saying, “Those searching for foreign interference in our elections need to look no further than the LinkedIn post … The interference is occurring in plain sight.” In a press release titled “The British are coming”, Trump’s campaign further accused the “far-left Labour Party” of influencing Kamala Harris’ "dangerously liberal policies." Travelling en route to Samoa, Starmer reassured reporters that Labour volunteers had participated in previous US elections, adding, “They’re doing it in their spare time, they’re staying with other volunteers over there. It’s really straightforward.” (With inputs from Reuters)
