Lib Dems actively deterring GC women

I live in an area currently held by the Conservatives but the Lib Dem candidate (who I know) has a good chance of winning. I messaged her tonight about this and she has replied saying that she doesn’t feel she has researched enough to properly understand my concerns. She says she has heard about the issues around changing rooms. She has asked if I am able to share anything that explains the main concerns that women fighting for sex-based rights have. Can anyone recommend a good resource I can send to her please?

I voted for the Lib Dems once. It was a mistake back then and clearly it would be a mistake again. I could never vote for a party that wants to weaken or remove women's sex based rights.

No read all of this yet - just wanted to say that spoiling a vote has to be done a certain way otherwise it's doesn't get counted in any way

Every ballot paper in the ballot boxes gets "counted". The total for each candidate and the total number of spoiled ballots have to match the number of ballot papers issued by the election officials in each polling station.

Some returning officers break down the spoiled papers to declare the reason they were spoiled, others don't.

There really isn't anything magic about how you spoil your ballot paper. If the tellers and the returning officers can't determine which single candidate you voted for it is spoiled and goes into the spoiled pile. Nobody is interested in them except in a close result they will be scrutinised to make 100% sure they can't be allocated to a candidate.

I had posted earlier today but unable to see my post ?? though not able to see if it had been deleted.....
I had suggested off the top of my head, and as a response to MN'ters, raising the concern of parties not representing women's fundamental rights. I proposed the possibility of a "neutral" vote. It would be a "party centering women's issues" essentially candidates could represent as far as possible the views of their constituents with non-women issues, voting accordingly. However, on women's issues the vote has the benefit of members voting to prevent the expediency of new laws that may erode women's rights without proper discussion and challenge. We are 50% of the electorate.

I've voted in three elections so far;

Lib Dems, because I genuinely believed they were a better option than Labour or Tory. As a student, they felt like the cool, protest vote against the mainstream. The little party that could get stuff done if given the chance. They then jumped into bed with the Tories and hiked tuition fees

Green, sort of same as the above plus a focus on general green issues. Didn't really expect them to get in and they didn't disappoint.

Labour, because they seemed like the least worst option. I held my nose and didn't especially want them to win, just the Tories to lose.

So I'm pretty stuck for this election. Because all of the above have either outright said that GC feminists are not welcome or otherwise indicated that they don't prioritise womens rights (backing self ID, for example)

Which leaves UKIP (an obvious no), Tories (disastrous for working class women particularly), WEP (don't know what a woman is) or an Idependent. I don't know if one will stand in my area - a pretty safe Conservative seat - but that might be the only option left.

It's all a bit depressing, isn't it? I'd just like to vote for a party I genuinely believe in who don't turn out to be a let down...

www.peaktrans.org/guest-blog-a-list-of-all-things-transphobic/

Captain and if anyone says your not they're a bigot

Marfisa please can you enlighten us where the transphobia is? You know, with a specific quote?

That's not true. We haven't even seen the Labour party manifesto yet: it hasn't been published. You can't say with any certainty at all what is in it, let alone draw the conclusion you have.

But Dawn Butler is their women and equalities person. And she is 110% TWAW/self ID/AWS. I don't think you need a massively functional crystal ball to call that one do you?

It's tough, isn't it? Vote Lib Dems, lose women's rights, vote Tory, hard Brexit, vote Labour, potentially lose women's rights, soft Brexit and anti-Semitism.

All 3 areas potentially existential for me (lost a parent thanks to NHS cuts, am a woman, lost family members in the Holocaust).

On balance, I probably feel most immediately personally threatened by Labour anti-Semitism and a hard Brexit.

But what a bloody choice.

How nice it would be to be able to cast a positive vote. I remember when I used to be able to do that.

I'm so tired of transphobia.

The last time a currency devalued that fast was in 1930's Germany

I cancelled my membership a week ago for this exact reason and specifically told them that in my email requesting membership cancellation. Alas, I'm politically homeless again.

I'm fed up of people shouting transphobia at women trying to defend their rights and idiot organisations seeming to think that what women think is unimportant.

Why not vote UKIP OP? They have openly expressed their prejudice against trans people.

I'm so tired of transphobia. Well done to the Lib Dems.

In all seriousness though it'll be left off the manifesto as they know the public won't agree.

You can't say with any certainty at all what is in it

I'm from the future.

"If you do it's 100% certain self ID will be written into law and you and your children's rights will never be the same again."

That's not true. We haven't even seen the Labour party manifesto yet: it hasn't been published. You can't say with any certainty at all what is in it, let alone draw the conclusion you have.

there isn't actually anyone to vote for

Bingo.

@CaptainKirksSpikeyGhost who do I vote for? I'm so lost. I can't vote for Lib Dem now. I can't vote for the Green Party due to their ambiguity if their pro-trans are actually anti-women(unless anyone has further information on this?) I can't vote tories, I don't think I could live with myself if I contributed to BJ being prime minister.
At this rate I'm going to spoil my ballot because there isn't actually anyone to vote for.

begrudgingly voting labour.

If you do it's 100% certain self ID will be written into law and you and your children's rights will never be the same again.

Wow, WOMEN ARE FECKING PEOPLE. We're.not dogs in need of training, contrary to growing belief.

I was certain I was going to vote for them in the upcoming election. I just can't do that now. I'm now begrudgingly voting labour... I think.

Well, that's me very thoroughly told Red!
Thank you for your explanation.

I wasn't complaining, more interested as so many people refer to door knockers but I havent ever had one.

I'm in a highly marginal Labour / Conservative constituency. I've always voted and never for the Tories. For the first time in my life I'm considering whether a Tory government with a small majority would be preferable to Labour or a Lib / Lab / SNP coalition but doubt I could actually vote Conservative. I was considering voting for the Lib Dems in order to register my support for a second referendum but cannot do so given their attitude to women. If I cannot support any of the parties standing, unless I can establish that any of the actual candidates are GC, I will spoil my vote but explain why. It is so frustrating. How on earth has this point been reached?

Ah ok, women's equality party. First search bought up security protocol!!

Ah WEP... I think there might be quite a few MNers who credit them with their awareness of the problems with trans ideology. It was their stated belief that a violent male prisoner who was ‘living as a woman’ should be able to move to a women’s prison that made a lot of us go WTF?????

I have lived in my home for over four years and have never once had a anyone knock on my door from a political party.
Is it something that happens in areas with less safe seats?

Do you know how long it takes for 2 people to knock on 100 doors (good practice is to canvas in pairs)?

If a constitutency which has a strong ld presence has only 50 active members for campaigning, then how many doors do you think 25 pairs can knock on in a 2hr session?

Remember that 25 pairs are rarely going to be available for every Canvassing session. Now think about how many Canvassing sessions the local party can organise in a week. Realistically you might get them out for 2 or 3 hours on weekend (no one really wants to do much more than that) and maybe twice during the week (and that'll be harder in December with the dark and cold).

If you assume you can knock on one door every 5 mins (and that's very very optimistic) that's 12 doors per pair per hour. If all 25 pairs turn out (that's very very optimistic) that's 300 doors per hour.

Realistically in reality you are more likely to be closer to 150 doors as a top whack unless your activists are really fanatical.

Across a week assuming that rate that's 150 x 6 hours. That's 450 doors.

The campaign period is 6 weeks so that brings you up to 2700 doors.

There are around 42,000 households in my constituency.

That's why no one is knocking on your door because the logistics of knocking on every door in a constituency are crazy. Just getting leaflets hand delivered to everyone is a feat in itself.

This is why generally speaking only target seats will be canvassed in any great amount with activists called in from neighbouring constituencies rather than doing every constituency.

This is where Labour has a big advantage as they have so many more activists than either the Lib Dems or the Conservatives.

It frustrates me when people complain that no one ever knocks on their door. There is a legitimate reason that it's not really viable and its far more productive for all parties to run weekly street stalls in central locations.