Coordinating spoilt ballots

0.36% at the 2019 election

on average less than 20 spoilt ballot papers per constituency.

House of Commons Library has numbers for every GE going back over the past 60 years,

Well I suggested "None of the above" to OH but he was happy to write in Party of Women. I showed him their 4 statements, he felt he could support them.

I'm wondering if writing 'Support single sex spaces' might be the answer.

With SEX in massive letters somewhere obvious, just so it gets noticed. Possibly in red Sharpie.

Or just bite the bullet and vote Labour. Or maybe LD if the candidate sees fit to reply.

I'd go with "Women AND men need single sex spaces, services and associations, so you've lost my vote" as all the Labour rhetoric has been around "safe spaces" or "women's spaces" but the single sex exceptions apply to more than just those things.

In the article posted upthread it said that in the previous election there were 100,000 spoiled votes.

Thanks. I think it might be higher this year. Not that it achieves anything, but it's my only option, and DP's too. He muttered something about voting tory for the first time ever, and doesn't want to, so I think it's two spoiled papers from our house.

Just those who vote.

Is that percentage of the total electorate of of those who turned up to vote? Genuinely interested.

Typical General Election gets around 0.3% spoilt papers.

Peak spoil was 1979 - 0.38%

staff at many counts and people don’t really care what is written on a spoilt paper. All spoilt ballot papers are adjudicated and reasons for those that are rejected given
if you do want to soil your ballot and worried that it will be counted as a good vote as written in a boa for a candidate, turn the paper on its side and write across it

I'd vote for an independent if I had the choice and their views aligned. Sadly I have con, lab, lib dem, green and reform, so I think I'm now as resigned to my action as I'm going to be.

What a waste

all postal votes are opened and counted if the firm sent with them has been filled in correctly. The electronic version of the e electoral register is updated when your envelope is received so you could ring the council to check that.

I am curious - do you feel the same about those who vote for, say, an independent candidate who has no chance of winning?

Just had a look at this thread in AIBU and SO MANY women feel politically homeless, and many who are voting Labour are doing it with a sense of dread and a heavy heart. We all know we need change, but there is a lot of anxiety about what an ideologically captured Labour Party will mean for women. This is NOT a partisan issue...

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5108270-to-ask-who-you-are-voting-for?page=1

What about, We respect women's rights/ spaces, why don't you?

It’s pretty vain to imagine no one but yourself understands what spoiling their ballot means.

Oh really?
Believe me, I am agonising over this election as never before.

Tory: actually a solid constituency MP, replies to emails etc. But I can't vote Tory: they have fucked up big time (Truss: say no more)
Labour: replied to my email; does, as an individual, seem to know what a woman is; is however rather wedded to the manifesto and seems unlikely to rock the boat. Is certainly toeing the party line on an issue of local concern.
LibDem: has not replied to my email; would be my party of choice, but their position on women is disgraceful, and I left the party over it some time ago.
Reform: fuck no.
Greens: awful on women. Never mind the actual Green candidate we have been given.

Spoiling my ballot will be a mark of rage and dismay at the utter fuckery of our political class. I want to vote LibDem but I doubt I'll be able to persuade myself to do so.

But yeah, vanity.
If you say so.

Haven't read the whole thread, but I have a question.
DH and DS both want to spoil their ballot papers for this reason.
I'm going to use the Respect my sex one, but any suggestions as to what my lovely men can put?

I am middle class. I am not better or special. I had a lot of opportunities. I'm still furious.

I am not middle class. I am not better or special. I grew up in poverty, free school meals, low achievement schools and few opportunities like many others.

Spoilt ballots are a mark of vanity. Pure and simple. "I want to show them how I feel" is not taking action.

Voting is showing how you feel. So is spoiling your ballot paper. I don't see why there's anything 'vain' about saying 'None of the above, and this is why'.

What do you think people should do if there is no candidate they feel they can vote for?