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Original poster

I just don't know who to vote for!!!!

108 replies

PCCmember · 30/06/2024 15:43

The election is in less than a week and I keep going round and round in circles not being able to decide who to vote for! I've quite politically engaged and I used to be an active member of a political party, but this time I really can't decide who to vote for. It's such a dismal choice and all parties have pretty negative aspects to their policies that I would find difficult to vote for. However personally I would prefer to vote for a candidate rather than spoil my ballot (totally respect those who chose to do so though!) even if I can only agree with some of their policies. This means choosing the least worst option, but I just can't seem to decide what this should be!

My constitutency is an incredibly safe Labour seat and the sitting MP will be re-elected. The choice facing me is as follows:

Liberal Democrat - This is the party a few years ago I would have described as my political home. However I quit the party over their complete disregard for women's and girl's rights to single-sex spaces. I have done the vote for policies quiz and it is stil the party whose policies I most strongly identify with (50%). I agree with their policies on democracy, economy, education, energy, health and social care, tax, immigration and transport. Given that no party will ever 100% align with my views if I am looking for the closest match, it should be the Lib Dems. But of course I completely disagree with their policies to introduce gender self-ID, end the spousal veto and to recognise non-binary identities in law. My local candidate is a (very) young man who has in the past called on Rosie Duffield to "reflect and say sorry".

Climate Party - A single issue party. I can't find any reference to their views on sex-based rights/gender identity. Can't find much about the local candidate.

Conservative - I don't have a strongly ideological objection to voting Conservative - indeed I have done so in the past. They were my second party (30% agreement) in the vote for policies quiz. However I don't feel that I can vote for this Conservative party due to their some of their policies - particularly immigration (Rwanda policy), the national service policy and the planned cuts to Higher Education (which is the industry which I work in!). However I of course support the policy to amend the Equality Act to make it clear that sex = biological sex. The local candidate has also made it unequivacably clear that he supports women's rights to same sex care, sports and services.

Reform - no thanks.

A completely random independent youtuber who seems to have got people to legally change their name to his so that he can stand in 11 constituencies!

Labour - I haven't been impressed at all by Keir Starmer's responses to the sex/gender issue and the shameful treatment of Rosie Duffield by him and his party. I also have a DD who is about to start secondary school at an Independent school so I just don't feel that I can vote Labour. The sittting MP (who will be re-elected) is a shadow deputy minister and is very much in the same vein as Keir Starmer (he used to be his deputy at one point). He avoids engaging with this issue and when he does he waffles about "safe spaces".

Worker's Party - George Galloway's Party. No thanks.

Green - although I do agree with some of their policies around public transport and PR, the party as a whole is too far left for me and the local candidate is TWAW.

So writing this out has made it clear to me that it's probably got to be either LD or Conservative, but I really can't decide which! If I were a single issue voter the choice would be easy, but other issues such as education, immigration, transport, health etc are all important too and I just can't decide which way I should hold my nose. Anyone else feeling completely unable to decide?

OP posts:
Original poster
PCCmember · 30/06/2024 16:34

Apileofballyhoo · 30/06/2024 16:07

I am in Ireland and we have transfers so it's different. That being said, we still have more or less safe seats. So what I do sometimes I give my number 1 to someone who is campaigning particularly on issues I care about but who is unlikely to get in, as I feel this sends a message to the larger parties that 1000 no 1 votes went to x candidate so those issues are very important. Basically how Nigel Farage got traction I suppose. But I know my vote gets transferred to my no 2 choice automatically as the no 1 is unlikely to get in, so I still get a vote, and that keeps transferring down if my preterred choice doesn't get in, or if they have a surplus. If I thought another candidate whose views I broadly align with had a better chance if I gave them my no 1 I suppose I'd do that, and I have done in the past.

In your case I might give my vote to the climate change person but I'd also be weighing up the chance of making my constituency one that parties are interested in fighting over, whatever the best way to do that might be. Your vote is unlikely to count but can be used to send a signal.

I don't think I could bring myself to vote for the LD candidate.

I completely agree that your electoral system is much fairer than the FPTP post system used in the UK (and maybe I wouldn't have such a dilemma if we had a different voting system), but that is another point in favour of the LDs as the conservatives aren't going to change the voting system. I do agree that it would take a lot of nose holding to vote for the LD candidate, but it also would for the conservative candidate for different reasons!

I am really not sure about the Climate Party. To be honest, I thought they were quite far on the left and so had discounted them and have only recently realised that this isn't so. However, it's a single issue party and although I think it's an important issue, I don't think it's one that I feel exceptionally strongly about to vote for a single issue party (if POW were standing in my constituency, it might be a different answer!)

Unforuntely unless there is some seismic political change on the horizon, my consituency will never be one that the parties are interested in fighting over - it's one of the 30th safest Labour seats in the entire country.

OP posts:
wastingtimeonhere · 30/06/2024 16:10

Same here, OP. I'm utterly out of ideas this time. None align with my views. I've even done some of the viewpoint survey things others have posted on threads, and I still can't make up my mind!

Apileofballyhoo · 30/06/2024 16:07

I am in Ireland and we have transfers so it's different. That being said, we still have more or less safe seats. So what I do sometimes I give my number 1 to someone who is campaigning particularly on issues I care about but who is unlikely to get in, as I feel this sends a message to the larger parties that 1000 no 1 votes went to x candidate so those issues are very important. Basically how Nigel Farage got traction I suppose. But I know my vote gets transferred to my no 2 choice automatically as the no 1 is unlikely to get in, so I still get a vote, and that keeps transferring down if my preterred choice doesn't get in, or if they have a surplus. If I thought another candidate whose views I broadly align with had a better chance if I gave them my no 1 I suppose I'd do that, and I have done in the past.

In your case I might give my vote to the climate change person but I'd also be weighing up the chance of making my constituency one that parties are interested in fighting over, whatever the best way to do that might be. Your vote is unlikely to count but can be used to send a signal.

I don't think I could bring myself to vote for the LD candidate.

Original poster
PCCmember · 30/06/2024 16:06

IDontHateRainbows · 30/06/2024 15:48

Tell me more about the random youtuber!

https://www.itv.com/news/2024-06-27/youtuber-niko-got-people-to-change-their-names-to-appear-in-11-constituencies

OP posts:
Original poster
PCCmember · 30/06/2024 16:06

Geiyotue · 30/06/2024 15:45

I'm in a similar position but for me the rights of women to single sex spaces is so important I'm voting conservative as none of the other viable parties are going to respect women. I'm fighting to stop the lib Dems getting in, in my area, so it's a straight choice between them.

As I say if I were a single issue voter, this would be the way in which I should vote particularly as the local candidate is very clear on this issue. However, there's a lot stopping me from voting conservative. I don't want to see the Rwanda policy continue which is both inhumane and a gimicky waste of money. I can't see how I can vote for my dd and her generation to face compulsory national service when their future options are already restricted due to Brexit (fortunately my DD is a dual national, but most of her generation are not) and savage cuts to Higher Education (which is where I work!) measuring its impact in purely economic terms only. I would also like to see a return to the single market and freedom of movement which of course I won't see under the conservatives. But of course, as they won't actually win (and definitely won't win locally) maybe none of this doesn't matter?

OP posts:
MoonshineSon · 30/06/2024 15:49

As a feminist it's hard.
For me GC isn't the main issue facing women so I have held my nose and am voting Labour. I have to balance it out told the candidates at the front door I am not voting Labour and why.
For me the absolute terrible court situation for women trying to pursue justice for rape is my no 1 concern, Labour seen the best about this and Tory policies around benefits and lower waged people affect women disproportionately.

IDontHateRainbows · 30/06/2024 15:48

Tell me more about the random youtuber!

Geiyotue · 30/06/2024 15:45

I'm in a similar position but for me the rights of women to single sex spaces is so important I'm voting conservative as none of the other viable parties are going to respect women. I'm fighting to stop the lib Dems getting in, in my area, so it's a straight choice between them.

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