“Maybe the Labour Party isn’t for you”

[tabbycatstripy]

A writer on Twitter says she asked her local Labour Party candidate ‘the question’ on the doorstep. Apparently defining a woman wasn’t a problem for him. But when the prospective voter wanted to discuss single sex spaces (I think the example given was a single sex grammar school for girls in an area that has two for boys already, and whether it should have to admit ‘trans girls’) the answer was “Maybe the Labour Party isn’t for you.”

Already a bunch of TRA responses accusing her of stoking up the culture war.

When the fact on the ground is that there is ALREADY double the provision in place for male children that exists for female children, it is not stoking a culture war to ask whether even more of those resources should be given to males. It’s just asking questions about things female people care about.

But then maybe the Labour Party isn’t for me.

I put this link upthread AutumnSquill.

votingcounts.org.uk/spoilt-ballot

I have seen people dismiss the practice of spoiling your ballot but I think they underestimate the way political parties work. Active parties in the most marginal of seats reach a huge number of the electorate through doorstep and telephone canvassing and private polling. However, most of us don't live in marginal seats or attend hustings meetings so we don't get a chance to say what we think unless we contact the candidates ourselves. Looking at the spoiled ballots is just one of the ways in which agents and candidates collect information to inform their campaign.

The 'respect my sex' campaign is harnessing support from women with very different political opinions. I personally think that writing 'respect my sex if you want my x' is a very clear way of showing that someone has not understood the voting instructions etc.

Of course it's not the same impact as having a long conversation with a candidate over coffee, as mentioned upthread. However, it's just one strategy among many. Some politicians are impervious to women's concerns. We knew that already. However, it's a message that will reach the more open minded.

Wow, what a way to get canvas for voters! Isn't the point that they're trying to persuade swinging voters?

A very young Labour guy knocked on my door last year and simply said "do you vote Labour?" and I said not anymore, he just replied with: "whaaaattttt?! Naww man, that's too bad man!", and then walked away...

Thanks, nettie434. Maybe I should have got a postal vote and had more "time to come up with something creative". I don't want to be writing an essay at the polling booth, something short and snappy would be good.

A French friend told me that it's very common in France to hand in what they call a "blank ballot". It's a way of saying that you're participating in the political process, but you don't think any of the candidates are worth voting for. She says the number of blank votes is reported in the press, and the parties definitely look at the result, and (maybe) they ask themselves what they could be doing to persuade some of those voters to change their minds.

When I was involved in canvassing for the Labour Party that was pretty much what you were told to do. The main purpose was to establish who and where your potential voters were so that you that you could encourage them to turn out on polling day (e.g. with 'Remember to vote!' notices through the letter box). You were specifically told not to get involved in longer discussions - instead you offered to arrange for the candidate to come and talk to them.

Mr Tapp lost by 4 votes.

twitter.com/Francis14485330/status/1522550405393223680?s=20&t=dJIMo3_RQRKyIjRTv6y43g

Shame. Touch of hubris maybe?
I guess there were quite a few people who thought that Labour was not the party for them after all.

I like that Rosie Duffield kindly commiserated him!

I just heard Emily Thornberry on the news dismissively referring to ‘the culture wars’ ( in the context of stupid Tories’ local election campaign).

While they may well have seemed to be protecting women’s rights simply for expedient and tactical reasons, she did not go on to say anything such as that Labour by contrast took them seriously. It was just a tossed of reference ‘the culture wars’.

I did the same, apart from the red pen thing. It was very cathartic.