Poll: The Administration Determination

[ganimede]

This time next week there will be great excitement in the UK as the country goes to the polls to vote for the new government in the General Election. Well, maybe great excitement is a bit of an exaggeration. More like lukewarm apathy. If the latest BBC Poll is any indication, it's going to be a close one. The current results there are

Comments

[wellinever]

I'm voting labour because the Green Party candidate in my constituency isn't really any more than just a name on the paper (he does t even have a website or anything ). the torys have designated it an official target in this election so I want to try and keep them out!

[ganimede]

My constituency has been a Tory stronghold for decades and my vote is worth 0.2 of a vote so it doesn't seem to matter who I vote for which is very frustrating. So I'm going Green.

[momentsmusicaux]

I was pondering voting SNP, but current polls show them easily taking my constituency. So I am going to go with my principles and vote Green, rather than vote tactically.

[ganimede]

It's hard when you feel like your vote won't count, but you might as well go with your principles in that case. I am also voting Green for the same reason.

[momentsmusicaux]

Well in this case I'm happy with the SNP; I was tempted to vote tactically for them.

[chaquir]

I suck with politics and avoid them as much as i can

If voting wasn't obligated here, I didn't even go

[ganimede]

I didn't used to have any interest in politics. When I transitioned, I discovered that I no longer had all the rights I'd had before, like the right to not be fired just for being Trans and the right to get married. As a result, I started to be more aware of political things because I could now see how it affected me personally.

Voting isn't compulsory here, I had no idea that was the case in Belgium. I think it's important that people vote but I don't agree that they should be forced to.

[chaquir]

ah yes, I understand the reason why you got more interested in it. I don't blame you for that.

Over here, whatever people vote for, is ignored in the end and the politicians put on top who THEY want on top, whatever the people said. So yeah, that's the main reason not many people would -uberhaubt- vote if they weren't made too.

[ganimede]

That can't be right, surely? So if the majority of people vote for person A, that person doesn't become Prime Minister and someone else does instead?

We don't have any say over who is the Cabinet or who becomes Prime Minister really. We vote for the person we want to represent our local area and then they get their seat in Parliament. The party with the most seats is then the one in charge and their leader becomes Prime Minister. We have no say in the party leader, the party votes for that themselves. And then the Prime Minister decides which of the people in Parliament get positions in the Cabinet (like Chancellor of the Exchequer, minister for Health, Work and Pensions, Education, Justice, etc) so we don't have any say in that either.

[sullen_hearts]

I have no Green party candidate. My choices were literally Labour, Con, Ukip and the Barnsley Independent Party who want to declare the Free State of Barnsley or some shit. I hate Labour but I have to vote for them to keep the fascists out.

[ganimede]

Oh, that's a terrible choice! I just had a look at your options on Google but there's no Barnsley Independent Party! That's a shame. It says you have LibDems, Labour, Conservative, UKIP and English Democrats. Would you have gone for LibDems rather than Labour?

[sullen_hearts]

Oh I'm confusing local and the general I think since I did them at the same time. BIP were at local level. I wouldn't have voted LibDem anyway, but definitely not since they made the coalition. Lee voted for them last time and is pretty certain he'll never do that again. I keep getting English Democrats literature through the door.

[ganimede]

Ohh, yeah, I forgot there's the local elections too. I voted LibDem last time but I'm possibly not going to do that again. But my constituency has been Conservative for the past 50 years - which is a bizarre thing seeing how the North is usually a Labour stronghold. I know people say that it doesn't matter how they vote but I think for me, it really doesn't. Conservatives get over 60% of the votes here, so there's hardly any chance of anyone else getting in :-/

[ellierachael]

I am scared by how many people seem to think UKIP are a genuine alternative. I think they'll get a few seats but hopefully nowhere near enough to get them any real influence

[ganimede]

Their sudden rise in popularity is scary. It just beggars belief that people can't see them for the racist bunch of ignoramuses that they really are. I think you're right that they might get a couple of seats but I really hope it's not enough for them to have any effect.