Two gay whistleblowers who brought international attention to the Trump and Brexit votes have launched a campaign to expose political cheating, and call for a second Brexit Referendum.
The UK has just one year before Brexit happens on 29 March 2019.
Today the Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Chris Wylie and friend, Vote Leave whistleblower Shahmir Sanni, stood together outside the UK Parliment. They want UK citizens to have a second chance to vote on Brexit because: ‘Vote Leave cheated.’
The pair, both gay, made the comments in front of an avid crowd of pro-remain supporters – despite being eurosceptics.
Even though they are happy with the result, they want another ‘fair vote’ because of the level of cheating they witnessed.
Shahmir told Gay Star News: ‘I am and always will be a leaver – but I’m not a cheater.’
Wylie says that without the Cambridge Anaylitca linked firm’s help – Vote Leave would not have won the campaign.
The UK voted to leave the European Union by a slim two percent majority in 2016.
The data firm Cambridge Analytica also worked on President Donald Trump’s election campaign. They also face accusations of harvesting as many as 50 million Facebook profiles without permission.
Chris Wylie is the gay Candian man behind Cambridge Analytica’s incredibly powerful data ‘monster.’ The Observer who broke the news of the extent of Analytica’s harvesting last week describes the firm as:
‘Cambridge Analytica is “Chris’s Frankenstein. He created it. It’s his data Frankenmonster. And now he’s trying to put it right.’
Despite voting leave, since being outed by the UK Government – Shahmir Sanni is calling for a Fair Vote
Brexit campaigner Shahmir Sanni’s actions could have been pivotal in Vote Leave winning the referendum. He campaigned with the group Be Leave.
Ahead of the event tonight, Shahmir tells GSN though he always will believe in leaving the European Union, he speaks tonight because he is not a cheater.
He was outed in an official Downing Street statement last week from a special adviser to British Prime Minister Theresa.
Sanni was just about to release the series of explosive claims about Vote Leave.
Stephen Parkinson, who he tonight called his ex-boyfriend, revealed in an official Downing Street official statement the two had ‘dated’ for 18 months. Parkinson is a special adviser to the British Prime Minister Theresa May.
In the statement, Parkinson accuses Sanni of blowing the whistle for personal reasons and ‘blurred lines’ about their relationship.
Sanni’s lawyers say this is the first time someone has been outed by an official UK Government statement. It’s something that has now put his family in Pakistan in Danger. In some areas of Pakistan, being gay is punishable by death. The UK Prime Minister Theresa May has since distanced herself from the statement titled official, calling it ‘a personal statement’.
Flaws in our democratic process, that could stir up homophobia
Kyle Taylor, Director of The Fair Vote Project, tell GSN that all of this shows ‘serious flaws in our democratic processes.’
Fair Vote are launching their campaign today because ‘democracy is more important than Brexit.’ But they are also particularly concerned about how it has affected a gay man, putting his family in danger.
‘The outing of Shahmir in response to his allegations was deeply upsetting. It’s a desperate attempt to deflect from flaws in our democracy distracting the British public from the issue at hand.’
Both Wylie and Sanni spoke together at the Fair Vote rally tonight, where Wylie called for a second referendum. The group have been publishing data of what they believe shows cheating in the Brexit campaign.
But Taylor also has a warning for LGBTI people about how this could go beyond political campaign cheating.
Because of the way that Cambridge Analytica and similar firms target people: ‘This can be used to target LGBTI people with specific messages.’
However, you can also identify those who are homophobic, and target posts to stir up more hate.
‘Whether people have apprehensions and negative feelings towards LGBTI people – dark ads campaign could be used to play on existing homophobia.’
Shahmir: They stripped me of the right to tell my mother the most important words
It’s been a tumultuous few days for Shahmir. Earlier this week he broke down in tears during a press conference about being outed.
He told Gay Star News before the rally tonight of the pain having your coming out taken away from you:
‘In my desperation to reveal the truth and tell my story; the opportunity to say the most important words of my life to my mother, my brothers, and my sisters was stripped from me.
‘Despite Number 10’s disgusting actions, and Theresa May’s lies about the official statement, there’s a heavyweight that’s been lifted off my chest in the past few, very long days.’
It’s a weight that he made him stay silent. Tonight he reiterated that his ex-boyfriend knew he wasn’t out to protect his family in Pakistan.
‘The Political Secretary of the Prime Minister chose to use that fear and that weight against me. Knowing full well of the impact it would have.’
Despite this, he says the LGBTQI+ community’s support ‘is helping to rid me of the fear and weight.’
‘Now they have nothing they can use against me, except lies and fake news. I can put all of me, including gay me, behind fighting for democracy.’
The £625,000 mystery pro-Brexit spend by a gay fashion student
Shahmir says there was illegal coordination between Vote Leave and BeLeave. Something that ‘calls into the question the democratic values’ of the EU referendum.
This data puts, yet another gay man spend for BeLeave into the fray. Darren Grimes spent £625,000 ($827,40o / €705,000) on the campaign’s behalf just days before the vote.
It is this money, which last November led the UK Electoral Commission to re-open an investigation into whether Vote Leave and Grimes breached campaign finance rules. Something they both deny.
Grimes allegedly racked up this spend with the digital agency, Aggregate IQ, just days before the vote. This agency has now been linked to Cambridge Analytica, by the Observer.
The Electoral Commission investigation into Grimes and Vote Leave remains open.
Tonight, Shahmir referred to Grimes as his friend. He says both were ‘used’ by Vote Leave to funnel ‘more money into the Vote Leave campaign.’
Read More from Gay Star News:
Brexit whistleblower: ‘UK stripped me of my right to come out to my mom’
Gay student is being investigated for £625,000 mystery pro-Brexit spend
