Labour activists in court amid vote rigging claims

Joel Bodmer, 40, his wife Shila Bodmer, 41, former Southend councillor Gabriel Leroy, 24, and former Croydon councillor Carole Bonner, 69, appeared only to confirm their names, dates of birth and addresses.

Last month, when the four were charged, Frank Ferguson of the Crown Prosecution Service's Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division said: "Our prosecutors have worked to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring this case to court and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.