I am standing for election AMA (except what party I'm standing for!)

[CandidateX]

Any questions at all about the process, but not about the politics, which are talked about all over MN already. I have a very busy morning ahead, but should be back to answer questions around lunch time, or a bit later.

I'm not in the UK but I'd be interested to know - do you have misgivings about some of your party's policies and how do feel about having to defend them? Have you been asked about or challenged on any policy that you personally disagree with and how did you handle it?

I think maybe about 5%?

probably not, to all 3.

Yes, I might stand for other things now. It is really hard work, and very time consuming, but at least I will know what to expect next time!

Second question I will think about and come back to.

Third question, I am standing in the constituency I live in, but that is not compulsory. Anyone can stand anywhere. What you need is 10 people who live in the constituency to back you. So you need to be nominated and seconded by local people, and 8 others to agree to the nomination, but you do not need to be local yourself.

Yes, there are a few policies I don't agree with. My stock answer is

"The ** party position is this......."

If I am asked if I agree, and might say "well, my personal position is this ............, however, I support the ** party because.........."

and then I talk about why I still think my party is the best option, even though there are some details I disagree on

Ok - running off to start canvassing! Have a lovely day everyone

Give over! The OP isn't "messing about on social media" how dismissive and rude - they're probsbly working 15 hour days and has carved out extra time for people on MN to understand the political process from their first hand perspective, which is a fantastic thing to do. Their responses are so insightful.

OP I wish you good fortune, your reason for wanting to stand (the dire situation for the children of this country) make me want to vote for you!

If you do get elected, do you think you’ll be able to make a difference on the subject(s) you care about? And in what way?

(I’m not sure I’m expressing this very well - I’m interested in the process from “having x opinion” to “policy implemented” and how individual MPs can and do contribute - hope that makes sense?)

Of course you can - you can talk about the nuts and bolts of the process without ever touching on politics. In the same way you can talk about the generics of applying for a job without ever saying what the role is.

I’m a massive political animal, honestly you’d be hard pressed to find someone more concerned about democracy, accountability, transparency than me - I’m even a member of the ERS - but even I can see the value in a post about how someone from a teaching background has followed a process to stand for Parliament. So many people on this country know naff all about politics and also think “Oh I could never do it” and threads like these help demonstrate you don’t have to be filthy rich or part of an old boys/girls network to put yourself forward.

No one has said any subjects are too polarising, just that there was a specific purpose to this thread which was clarified from the offset. Maybe people can’t see past a purely black and white interpretation of the ‘AMA’ part of the title.

Ok, so I was wrong about this, the whole of my constituency has now been leafletted. There was long delay between the two halves being done, but apparently that was due to the post office, not the deposit.

O yes, all MPs have the option of having an input. I have seen the workings of the house of commons occasionally, and for all the grandstanding and arguing and posturing you see on the TV, in the committee stages of any legislation, MPs of all parties get together and share their knowledge and ideas very constructively. I would certainly be able to have my say in the committee stages of anything related to education, for example, and other areas I have a lot of experience in.

A rare lie in today, ready for the final push tomorrow! Hardest thing to fit in tomorrow is actually going to the polling station and voting myself! I have to go home and change first, as I can be accused of "canvassing in the polling station" if I wear clothes that indicate wone party or another.... I wish I had ordered a postal vote!

Are you allowed to canvass etc tomorrow? I know there are limits on what media can do tomorrow but not sure about yourself?

yes, tomorrow will be a 24 hour working day! 6am-6am, maybe longer. We will all be canvassing all day, and then move on to the count overnight

What duckhouse will you be purchasing on expenses?

Money is very tightly controlled, I have to declare every single stamp. We don't get any expenses for travel, etc, or for anything else we are required to have or spend money on for ourselves personally during the campaign, such as security, etc

What requirements do you need money for?

Well, security mostly. You are supposed to full fill certain criteria keeping your home secure during an election, as candidates can be targets. However, that does require a certain type of home for one thing, which is going to put people off if they are in a HMO, for example, or similar. I don't know what can be done about that, but it does seem undemocratic that you can only be considered compliant with recommendations if you can afford it, and if you are considered non compliant then that has knock on effects for insurance and personal safety

Op how do you go about getting selected as a candidate? Do you need to know the right people in the local party? Have lots of history and experience with local politics? what’s the interview and selection process like.

really interesting thread by the way

You don't really need to know people, as such - just be able to apply, and give your local experiences, and be prepared to be interviewed online, by a panel. The interview was broadcast live to anyone in the national party who wanted to see it. Then there is a vote which is open to the whole party I think, although people tend to only vote locally. There were several prospective candidates for this constituency, but I was the only local one and so it was knowing the constituency rather than knowing the party officials, that got me selected for the ballot

Good luck for today.

How much notice do you take of the number of spoiled votes?

Thank you.

The spoilt votes are confirmed in batches. There will probably be someone there from the party at each session. That might be me.

The spoilt votes are held up one by one. It is possible to see where they are marked, but not how they are marked, so you can see if they have been written across, but not what the writing is. Each is held up for a second, and everyone nods to agree it is spoilt, and we move on to the next one.

It is possible to ask for a closer look. This happens if there is room for disagreement about whether a vote is actually irredeemably spoilt. I have a huge list of records of previous agreements in different circumstances, for example, does the cross go into two boxes? Is there more than one mark on the paper but it is possible to decide which one is intended?

Papers which are marked ambiguously or unintentionally unclearly will probably be looked at closely and discussed. I have personally in the past argued that a particular paper was marked with one candidate being chosen, even though the paper had then been smudged, and the ink had gone into more than one box.

The papers that are looked at and discussed are ones like this, where it seems the voter did have an particular intention, but they have not expressed it correctly. There is no looking at, recording or discussion of papers deliberately spoilt, written on, drawn on, etc. They will be held up, and agreed to be spoilt, but no one will be close enough to see the details, and no one will ask to see the details. There is no time for that.

I'm off!

It is going to be 24 hours back to back!

I will come back and answer more questions, if any are asked, but unlikely to be until Friday afternoon now. I might have a chance to take a quick peak if we get any down time late afternoon today, but can't guarantee that

So half way through the 24 hour long shift! Its like a party and an expedition all rolled into one, wonderful atmosphere at party head quarters, wonderful camaraderie between candidates from different parties, lots of hard work knocking on doors, lots of very interesting conversations, lots of encouragement from complete strangers.

How did you do?

And have you slept yet?