Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Feminism: chat

Original poster

Local elections and sex/gender/trans issues

264 replies

DameHelena · 04/05/2022 13:59

I am REALLY struggling to see who I can vote for tomorrow, due to their position on this issue.
Labour: no
Lib Dems: no
Green: no
Very much would like not to vote Tory (am historically Labour and/or Green and tend to go Green in local elections).
We have a Womens Equality Party candidate, but I can't find their official stance on women's sex-based rights. Does anyone have any knowledge? And how are you voting if you're in the same position as me?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
5
TaysideTeuchter · 07/05/2022 19:48

NitroNine · 07/05/2022 19:01

But @Tanith (& anyone else who may need to hear it), (deliberately) spoiling your vote is not the same thing as not voting. The two should neither be confused nor conflated; & there are people (please note I am not accusing you of this!) who deliberately seek to do the latter to dissuade people from participating in a legitimate form of political protest.

In this specific instance, the Respect My Sex campaign was well-publicised before the election, so those ballots spoilt referencing that will have:
• told Tories that they can’t expect to simply scoop up the votes of all the people who’re concerned about this issue because they are somehow the only [large, GB-wide] Party willing to acknowledge there’s a real world & we’re living in it (the irony, oh, the irony)
• communicated to the rest of the omnishambles that people really do mean it about women’s rights being crucial when it comes to how they vote
Candidates (& their agents) see all the spoilt ballots, as per this guidance on how to spoil your ballot so yes, they are all aware of how many, if any, in their Ward were spoilt with “respect my sex” (or similar).

That votes had been spoiled this way was mentioned on Twitter by a journalist who was at a count in Cardiff, which is only going to increase the amount of discussion it gets. It’s just another wee weight to stack, together with the EHRC’s new guidance & the Cass Review, on the scales of Justice that are in such desperate need of rebalancing.

Vote-spoiling is literally for signalling you feel disenfranchised. That you wish to participate in the democratic process but nobody is representing you[r interests]. We do not owe our votes to a least-worst candidate. For many of us in England, it’s impossible to vote Tory: I mean, maybe Central Government would stop brutally punishing my Council if it went Blue, but probably not. And if Tory Councillors are as fond of disabled people as Tory MPs are… 😶 I don’t think all people who vote Tory are terrible humans - I know for a fact they’re not. But I couldn’t vote for a Party who willingly visit so much misery on the truly vulnerable.

The Parties would all happily force me to accept intimate care from a male person who simply says they “identify as” a woman. (If you think you can just request someone else, bless you & your adorable ignorance of how social care works [in practice]). They don’t think “woman” is anything other than an abstract concept; & they will do immeasurable harm should they be able to be able to create legislation that sets in stone the tenets of Gender Woo. People may not like that the UK has an established religion, but it does; & it’s the Church of England, not the Church of Gender Woo. The latter is still very much in the heretic-burning phase thankfully keeping it metaphorical & I really really do not want it digging in with a new set of Test Acts (targeting all recusants I hasten to add, no reason Catholics should have all the fun this time around) & resurrecting other recusancy punishments.

👏👏 👏 👏

Peregrina · 07/05/2022 19:49

Yes, it all seems up there with the witch burning and drowning of the 16th and 17th Centuries. Say that transwomen are not women and you are screamed at as a transphobe.

DomesticatedZombie · 07/05/2022 19:53

I actually feel better about having spoiled my vote than I have about voting tactically before. Especially when done as part of a campaign that is hopefully seen and noted throughout the country.

PineMartenPeanutbutter · 07/05/2022 19:58

I didn’t vote. I just couldn’t bring myself to vote for any of them. Spoiling my vote seemed pointless.

Peregrina · 07/05/2022 19:59

I actually feel better about having spoiled my vote than I have about voting tactically before.

We didn't have elections, but it would certainly be worth it for a Council election. I wouldn't want to risk it in a GE.

For those of you who did spoil your vote - did the candidate that you objected to win anyway?

DomesticatedZombie · 07/05/2022 20:10

Three-way coalition, Peregrina.

I'm not sure I'd spoil a vote for a GE - probably largely depends on how close the seat is going to be, and the candidates.

I will consider for Scottish parliamentary elections, definitely.

mrshoho · 07/05/2022 20:20

Our London Borough turned Blue after many many years under Labour. Not surprised as there's a huge fraud case ongoing. Low turn out. lots of passed off residents. Our trans women didn't win her seat. Not as popular as she imagined she was.

SmiledWtherisingsun · 08/05/2022 21:54

Peregrina · 07/05/2022 19:59

I actually feel better about having spoiled my vote than I have about voting tactically before.

We didn't have elections, but it would certainly be worth it for a Council election. I wouldn't want to risk it in a GE.

For those of you who did spoil your vote - did the candidate that you objected to win anyway?

I wasn't objecting to one candidate.
I want Labour to know how strongly I feel.
They always get in here anyway.
I wouldn't EVER vote Tory.
I wouldn't spoil my vote in a national election.

ScreamingMeMe · 09/05/2022 07:53

Tanith · 07/05/2022 14:00

But what has actually been achieved by not voting?

The biggest gains have been for the Lib Dems. The Greens have also gained more new councillors than Labour.

Good?

(Although spoiling ballots and not voting are not the same thing.)

It means Labour and The Conservatives should realise they can't just rest on their laurels.

What would you have people do instead?

Peregrina · 09/05/2022 08:58

The biggest gains have been for the Lib Dems. The Greens have also gained more new councillors than Labour.

Both of whom have tied themselves up in knots saying that TWAW. But when it comes to 'At least the Tories know what a woman is'. Yes, the Tories do, because they believe that women should know their place - back in the kitchen.

ScreamingMeMe · 09/05/2022 17:12

As if the left isn't also rife with misogyny. Remind me again how many female leaders Labour has had?

Same question to you, Peregrina: what do you think GC voters should do? What's our best option?

RaininginDarling · 09/05/2022 19:38

Saw your post @NitroNine - totally agree. Nothing like jumping on the luxury belief bandwagon whilst chewing on your political word salad. Saves you from addressing urgent issues.

Peregrina · 09/05/2022 20:29

A difficult question. For me in a GE trying to keep a representative of the current Tory party out would be the main thing. In council elections the whole slate are elected at one time, so ballot papers can almost be as long as your arm. Hmm - what do you do then? Well there are usually a raft of Independents of various hues, who could be worth voting for, or not vote for the full complement. Possibly put up oneself as a 'respect my sex' candidate? Worth thinking about. Otherwise, probably spoil the ballot. We didn't have elections this time and I wasn't aware of it as an issue at our last election.

(I think I thought then that all Transwomen had had surgery. I now find that they mostly haven't. I have only become fully aware when these 'sportsmen' like the New Zealand weightlifter were allowed into women's teams and we all had to pretend that it was all OK.)

NitroNine · 09/05/2022 20:53

Well they’ll not be addressing any issues at all unless/until the DUP stop acting the maggot & allow the formation of a sodding government. I hope they get some collective cop on soon @RaininginDarling.

Pity they can’t just be told “ah, that’s grand, we totally understand being elected but not taking your seats - let us know if you change your mind”; & then Alliance get to step up if the DUP still won’t play nicely. We all know this is really them having a tantrum over losing the post of FM - and losing it to the Sinners, worst (to their minds) of all. Sinking Stormont does feck-all to help anyone; & the British Government aren’t going to be impressed: “Oh, you’re refusing to form a government again? Are people asking for government resources in their first language - as long-promised - again? 🙄”

GenderWoo does, I suppose, have the seeming advantage of being non-Sectarian. Absolutely unconnected to the past, it can be used to signal how wonderfully Modern and Progressive everyone is now (so would you cheeky feckers on the mainland stop talking about dinosaurs now: NANIPALT?!); & that NI is a land of milk & honey, not rubber bullets & bomb blasts. And how could you possibly expect them to resist all those flags now? 😉

New posts on this thread. Refresh page