Voting for the party vs the candidate

[freakinthespreadsheets]

Going to vote at 6 o'clock but still haven't decided who to vote for. It will be either Labour or Conservative as only other options here are lunatic independents or Reform. The Labour and Tory candidates here are completely neck and neck in the polls.

Totally torn between the two. I align best with Labour's manifesto overall and like their policies around education, immigration, taxation, and healthcare especially. I know women's rights/women's only spaces etc is a big issue on MN at the moment but doesn't come into it for me personally. I don't like the Tories' policies on immigration in particular, nor the corrupt/chaotic way they have been operating for the last few years. I'd like Labour to get in overall.

However the Tory candidate personally is the most proactive in the area, has genuinely been sorting out issues for people in the community for months even before the election was called despite not being the MP or Councillor currently. He also campaigns personally for things I support, like veterans mental health and fought to get a SEN school built locally. Lived here and had a business here all his life apart from when he was away serving in the forces.
Labour candidate is a Councillor for a different area of the city and as a result havent seen anything of her. All we have heard from her is several (duplicate, wasteful) leaflets with generic statements like "Vote for change, Vote Labour" without actually telling us what her stances are on issues that affect the local area/people generally. I do hear anecdotally though she is a very good Councillor where she is now but don't know anything about her really.

Should I vote for Labour (vote for the party I want in overall) or Tory (the candidate I'd like)?

Only you can decide.

https://voteforpolicies.org.uk/

For general elections I would say look at the big picture. Who do you want to be running the country for the next five years?

Same dilemma but going with the party. A lot of good local people will lose out. But they are sadly tied to a party. And they represent the views of that party. However good they are personally.
So I have to vote party.
In local elections for the council I usually go with the people, not the party.

Thanks all, I think you are right and I should vote party (Labour). I know their policies align better with my values.

Fortunately for me, they are both the same.

I have no idea who to vote for at this point
Based purely on local Candidates
Labour - awful man, Corbynite and generally unpleasant
Tory - actually pretty decent, met him a few times and hes a good local MP
Liberal - parachuted in from miles away and I know nothing about her

I did a postal vote last week.

I am a lifetime Labour voter and am gutted I’m away for today/tomorrow

Our seat is so tight they won’t predict it - it’s a 4 way tie between Cons, Lab, LibDem & Reform

LibDem are very strong in one area of the seat so they are perhaps the best tactical vote. They are popular in the town as they run the council. But I’ve heard appalling things about how they run things from an insider including racist comments and unfair play. Their tactics in the lead up have been very underhand.

With every fibre of my being I hate what the Tories stand for and what they’ve done to the country the last 14 years. But the local MP is human and is prepared to fight on a key local issue that affects me.

Reform lol never not in a million years

The Labour candidate is new not from the area and an unknown.

It was a no brainer for me - Labour. At the end of the day I’m not voting for something that’s in it for me - I am voting for policies I believe in and a fairer society.

In general elections I vote for the party - I think the national implications are the most important.
We are in a new constituency because of boundary changes, our previous MP dod a good job locally and it sounds as if the current MP in our new constituency is a good and involved local MP.
But I'm not voting for them,I'm voting with what will happen to the country in mind,and hoping that whoever is elected will step up and do a good job locally as well.

I voted labour as my area is a lifelong labour seat;the two independent candidates in my area are both former labour MP's who were booted for bad behaviour.

I actually can't believe one of them has had the actual balls to stand again as what he did was atrocious.

Vote Labour OP. They align with your values and offer hope.

I vote for the country as a whole so even though our Tory candidate is a perfectly pleasant man socially with an absolutely lovely dog I voted Lib Dem and I hope he loses.

Don't make me break out the posters!

The reality is that the candidates will vote in Parliament according to party lines so I suggest you vote for the one that aligns with your own values.

Also, this is a very strange election - make sure it really is Tory versus Lab in your constituency. There are various predictions based on polls online, e.g. electionmaps.uk.

I take the view that any truly decent Tory candidate would have defected at some point over the shambles of the last 5 years if not before.