AIBU to wonder why there isn't this angst over parliamentary or local elections

[TimeforaNNChange]

I've lost count of the number of FB and forum posts I've read from people today who are worried about 'making the wrong decision' and 'disliking the responsibility' of having a vote in the referendum. Yet these are the same people who are blasé about local and parliamentary elections - describing candidates as all the same, placing their vote arbitrarily, or not at all.

But the referendum is not binding - MPs still have to decide what to do AFTER we, the public, have expressed our opinion; and many of the MPs who will be making that decision have been elected by people who really didn't give their choice of MP much thought at all.

AIBU to think "we" should give the same level of thought in selecting our elected representatives as we are to the referendum?

because usually the choice is between a shitty labour party and crappy tory party,

Actually, for most of my life, it hasn't even been that - it's been waste your vote on anything other than a Tory MP as whatever you do, because of where you live, you will get a Tory MP.

It is the pointlessness of my vote that has led me to give up tactical voting and in the last election I actually voted Green as Labour were shite and the Tories unspeakable. We weren't going to get a Green MP, but then we were never going to get anything but a Tory.

At least in this referendum we have a 50/50 chance of actually getting what we vote for - way better odds than GE.

What was said.

I've voted at nearly every opportunity I can. I've tended to live in safe seats where I don't tend to favour the dominant party- I review my position each time. I still turn up as a point of principle though. Even at the daft police commissioner elections where I've got no idea who the candiates are or what they stand for, I would rather turn up to spoil my vote than fade into apathetic masses. At least a spoil is acknowledged.

I'm hoping that this vote has a higher turn out than usual and encourages more people to vote long term.

As for the OP, because usually the choice is between a shitty labour party and crappy tory party, which isn't much to get excited about. with the referendum, there is a real choice here, and one is very different from the other.

But it's those shitty Labour Party MPs or crappy Tory party MPs to whom you are expressing your POV via the referendum. Do you trust them to abide by the majority opinion ?