Coordinating spoilt ballots

[Binglebong]

I know there is a thread about have you spoilt your ballot but this is slightly different.

I'm trying to hold my nose and vote for someone but there is not a single potential MP in my constituency who does not disgust me. I don't want to vote Reform or someone as a protest as it might be seen that they have more support than they do. So the liklihood is that I will spoil my vote.

I know spoilt votes only really get looked at if there is a huge number or if the vote is close. But just in case I was wondering if it is worth having the same thing written on all of them to show that it is a massive issue that is losing them votes. What would you suggest (if you think it is a good idea).
Respect my sex if you want my X is a good one but is it the best?

Woman =adult human female is good. Or you could do respect my sex (or my wife's or mum's!) sex. They won't know who wrote it after all.

What about, We respect women's rights/ spaces, why don't you?

Just had a look at this thread in AIBU and SO MANY women feel politically homeless, and many who are voting Labour are doing it with a sense of dread and a heavy heart. We all know we need change, but there is a lot of anxiety about what an ideologically captured Labour Party will mean for women. This is NOT a partisan issue...

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/5108270-to-ask-who-you-are-voting-for?page=1

I am curious - do you feel the same about those who vote for, say, an independent candidate who has no chance of winning?

all postal votes are opened and counted if the firm sent with them has been filled in correctly. The electronic version of the e electoral register is updated when your envelope is received so you could ring the council to check that.

What a waste

I'd vote for an independent if I had the choice and their views aligned. Sadly I have con, lab, lib dem, green and reform, so I think I'm now as resigned to my action as I'm going to be.

staff at many counts and people don’t really care what is written on a spoilt paper. All spoilt ballot papers are adjudicated and reasons for those that are rejected given
if you do want to soil your ballot and worried that it will be counted as a good vote as written in a boa for a candidate, turn the paper on its side and write across it

Typical General Election gets around 0.3% spoilt papers.

Peak spoil was 1979 - 0.38%

Is that percentage of the total electorate of of those who turned up to vote? Genuinely interested.

Just those who vote.

Thanks. I think it might be higher this year. Not that it achieves anything, but it's my only option, and DP's too. He muttered something about voting tory for the first time ever, and doesn't want to, so I think it's two spoiled papers from our house.

In the article posted upthread it said that in the previous election there were 100,000 spoiled votes.

Excellent!

I'd go with "Women AND men need single sex spaces, services and associations, so you've lost my vote" as all the Labour rhetoric has been around "safe spaces" or "women's spaces" but the single sex exceptions apply to more than just those things.

I'm wondering if writing 'Support single sex spaces' might be the answer.

With SEX in massive letters somewhere obvious, just so it gets noticed. Possibly in red Sharpie.

Or just bite the bullet and vote Labour. Or maybe LD if the candidate sees fit to reply.

Well I suggested "None of the above" to OH but he was happy to write in Party of Women. I showed him their 4 statements, he felt he could support them.

0.36% at the 2019 election

on average less than 20 spoilt ballot papers per constituency.

House of Commons Library has numbers for every GE going back over the past 60 years,

What's 'middle class' about stickers?

But yet you think you can judge someone; their background and 'class' on the basis that they have had stickers made for use when needed?

Nothing at all. Just noting what some people think is acceptable and unacceptable forms of protest.

General Election ’peak spoil’ in the speakers constituencies (last 2 elections) was 3%, which has been commented on and used to support the argument that those constituents object to effectively having no choice in the elections.

Oops remedial maths lessons for me.

unless we now have 6500 constituencies- the average last time was about 180 per constituency. Nearer 200 than 20.

apologies for the misleading number in the original post.

In addition to spoiling your ballots to record your feelings of lack of representation on this single issue, what kinds of protest/engagement with your MP etc has everyone been engaged in before the election?

Argument yet to hold any sway though @BackToLurk . Nothing has changed in that regard yet? i do think the individual constituency level range of spoilt % would be interesting to see. Peak spoil was at the overall level but I take your point around variability. The Speaker’s constituency also had I think quite a lot lower turnout - rather understandably - at the last election. And probably the one before, not sure what it was like when Bercow was Speaker.