How you choose your vote
 

I nearly posted this in another thread but thought it might be worth a discussion of its own.

How do you decide who to vote for in national and local elections? Do you consider yourself a supporter of any particular party and does this mean you always vote for them?

I generally vote Conservative because in general terms the Conservative party matches my outlook: smaller State, greater emphasis on individual graft, mutual assistance within communities rather than a mouth-open, eyes-shut insistence that the State must 'look after' us.

However I have voted something other than Conservative on a number of occasions, sometimes to register a protest at the Party's behaviour at specific times (I voted for the Referendum Party in 1997 and will vote UKIP at every opportunity up to and, possibly, including the 2015 general election).

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Chose the party and joined the party and maybe one day will even be a candidate as we need more to have a chance of change. UKIP the only way towards a Greater Britain

Policies for me all around if you click my sig its to a pdf of what UKIP stand for and I agree and back all of it

Put Britain first ...

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I live in a Conservative safe seat so I usually vote for the party that I want to win just to be included in the numbers - no point tactually voting. I don't vote for a specific party each time, the first time I could vote in a General Election I voted Labour, last election Liberal Democrat.

Local Elections it depends. I have voted Green, Liberal Democrat and Labour. I just go for the one that is a match between what I want/who could win in those cases.

I don't like being a 'loyal' supporter to a party. It seems pointless. Don't give your vote away for free afterall, people should have to work for it.

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my voting habits are pretty much on a par with yours chris ,and i will be voting ukip from now until the EU is just a distant memory .

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UKIP should have its own category in the vote seeing as the latest opinion polls put them as 3rd party

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I don't consider myself a supporter of any party, if only because I'm used to PR and that breeds an entirely different outlook on politics than the partisanism that you get in FPTP.

However, despite the recent fiasco, I find myself agreeing with the LibDems quite often.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I don't vote.

but if I did vote, I'd vote labour so they give state support to the hungry.

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I can't bring myself not to vote but have voted for all of the main parties in my life and tend to base the final decision on what feels best (or least worst) at the time. Best I can say right now is that I won't be voting for Miliband's Marauders.

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Conservative.I hate too much state support and i have lived through Labour ruining the country twice

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If i do vote at the next election is presently looking like it will be UKIP. In the past its always been the Conservatives.

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Is it Dave himself and not so much the party that has made you change your vote?

Re: How you choose your vote
 

A good point, but in 1983 the opinion polls suggested the SDP could form a government ... things didn't turn out quite that way. :erm: :D

UKIP's opinion poll showing is a great result in and of itself for everyone who has worked for them to achieve recognition, but I think they need to show a little more hard support before they supplant the Lib Dems in general political discussion like this.

Of course, if they put in a good show at the Euro elections next year ...

Personally I'd love to see UKIP rise and rise. The Left dismisses them as an 80s Thatcher tribute act, but you can hear the fear in their voices - not surprising, seeing as Thatcher and the 80s Tories repeatedly handed the Left's ass to it on a plate. David Cameron and assorted metropolitan hangers-on, take note. :afire:

Re: How you choose your vote
 

For me picked Green voted them in councils. Hate them but dont like tory light ukip. There not exactly anybody else to vote for here.

You would be insane to vote lib dems, could argue all three main parties. They back stabbing, corrupt and lieing cheats all three.

Labour dont convince me but hell ed is better his blairwitch brother. Alot labour supporters should guard on wanting his brother. You will end up labour party more blue than blairs rein.

To be fair all three leading parties absolute rubbish with weak members uptop. Even worse alot the parties got alot rubbish behind not got any good up and coming future leaders.

All got bunch current leaders which so stuck up the top 10% they forget they running a government for all. They forgotten what its like to live or never experienced living like the others. They all persecute those who cant fight back those not to blame for issues. Most talk the talk very little substance in actions against corrupt banks, big corporates.

Cant be on my own disalusioned with the corrupt way politics has and is being heading.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I am not sure the left, or at least most of them, see UKIP in fear. If anything UKIP is a benefit to the left as it's getting most of it's support from voters who normally would vote Tory. That's rather simplistic but I think it's generally correct. A strong showing for UKIP in 2015 would make it really hard for the Conservatives to win the election....

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Correct, but it might prompt the Tory high command to reconsider its positioning in time for 2020. There is a long game to be played here.

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No i don't mind Dave, its the EU that's made me change my mind. We really do need to get out of the EU now.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Which position though? It's Europe which really seems to be the problem. I think that the referendum will ultimately kill UKIP off. I am not that knowledgeable about the internal disagreements on the right but I rarely see UKIP take much of a strong position, or peel off Tory loyalists, on any issue other than the EU.

Long term what will their impact be? A small but permanent anchor to keep the Tories just right of centre? I still think that would only work for issues which are of enough concern to people on that right that they're willing to cost the Tories the election to push for it.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Same.

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I have no interest in UKIP other than a protest vote

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Nope think this what would consider curveball he pitched. Dave has no intention putting up referendum. I will be shocked he being this honest but doubt it. He calling it as he trying offset loss votes. Those voters fools to believe it. Once in it will be ditched with some excuse why. All these parties deceitful liars.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

'make up my mind each time' - in the vain hope that, if elected, the candidate with the best local policies will actually get to have some implemented, rather than being subsumed into the party machine.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Problem though deceit in there manifesto's. So we can never tell if they lieing to get the votes. Anybody can woo the voters with bit spin.

We need change in political system. As currently they can say anything to be appealing then do things differently.

When they are honest go through with there mandate. They always asume ALL there manifesto when voted for is what people vote. They never consider that some policies are not popular.

Maybe we need to vote on each manifesto's as well the party. That way people got the power to force the parties to comply.

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would vote if there was none of the above option ;)

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I want to vote for someone I feel will do the job and not just someone who goes through the motions and sticks to the party line no matter what.After having duck house MP for 30+ years I was voting for a change for most of those 30+ years.

Getting to the point of not bothering any more as I feel the new MP will become another incumbant like the last.Especially as she never sticks her head above the parapet .

Re: How you choose your vote
 

:clap::clap::clap::clap:

Lobbying and Whips should be banned. Why should MP fear voting against his party if its the wishes of his constituents.

MP should look at constituents/country before party interests. Politics gone wrong when we moved to this Career MP's. Worst MP's are just been plucked from privelage background straight to party HQ then groomed. Cocooned away from reality so they end up with no empathy to the actions.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

You would have to change election funding, then, as individuals could not afford electioneering costs.

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If it would result in MPs truly representing their constituents, then we should do it.

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We would have to change our system of government, as MPs are representatives, not delegates.....

Politics

Re: How you choose your vote
 

How can they be representatives, when they can't represent the people that elect them, but have to always submit to the party whip, no matter what their constituents think.

- if true representation means a change in our system of government, then so be it, in my opinion.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Did you read the link?

the interests of their constituents should not over-ride that of the country, IMHO.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

More fool you......imo {wish I was wrong) :(

---------- Post added at 22:52 ---------- Previous post was at 22:45 ----------

That's how I feel. Unfortunately, this shower of pseudo conservative rubbish may not get my vote this time. Might have to be UKIP......

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Personally, any party that would stop immigration, help people between 25 and 50 get back into work, held a referendum on the EU and gave Scotland independence would get my vote at next election.

As it stands at the moment, Cameron gets my vote. I've voted for pretty much every party but Liberals. Cannot support Clegg, they way he has acted during this government has been like a petulant spoilt little brat. Quicker he steps down from Leader the better.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Where's the option for "None of the above" I see that option becoming more popular these days.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I change my vote depending on the election. I'll happily vote SNP for Scottish Parliament elections even though I'm a firm believer in the union and will be voting NO when Admiral General Salmond has his referendum.

That said after this lot of useless and corrupt numpties I doubt I'll ever vote conservative again unless there is real change in their leadership and direction.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

I think the poll results in this thread give the lie to the frequent moans from certain people that this is a Tory forum.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Yes indeed Chris and it looks like the Lib Dems would lose their deposit in nearly every seat.:Yes:

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The Libs had some good ideas in the GE but they ended up being Camerons butt crack loofer

Re: How you choose your vote
 

No matter who you vote for, you always get the government.

Re: How you choose your vote
 

Yes I read the link & I realise how my wish for a totally different system is up there in cloud cuckoo land.

However I'm not sure there isn't room for any change, at all. Allowing more free votes in parliament would be one suggestion. I don't see that voting against party lines is always going to over-ride the needs of the country.

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I don't bother to vote, because they all seem to be one in the same.
They all seem equally incompetent.