I just don't know who to vote for!!!!

[PCCmember]

The election is in less than a week and I keep going round and round in circles not being able to decide who to vote for! I've quite politically engaged and I used to be an active member of a political party, but this time I really can't decide who to vote for. It's such a dismal choice and all parties have pretty negative aspects to their policies that I would find difficult to vote for. However personally I would prefer to vote for a candidate rather than spoil my ballot (totally respect those who chose to do so though!) even if I can only agree with some of their policies. This means choosing the least worst option, but I just can't seem to decide what this should be!

My constitutency is an incredibly safe Labour seat and the sitting MP will be re-elected. The choice facing me is as follows:

Liberal Democrat - This is the party a few years ago I would have described as my political home. However I quit the party over their complete disregard for women's and girl's rights to single-sex spaces. I have done the vote for policies quiz and it is stil the party whose policies I most strongly identify with (50%). I agree with their policies on democracy, economy, education, energy, health and social care, tax, immigration and transport. Given that no party will ever 100% align with my views if I am looking for the closest match, it should be the Lib Dems. But of course I completely disagree with their policies to introduce gender self-ID, end the spousal veto and to recognise non-binary identities in law. My local candidate is a (very) young man who has in the past called on Rosie Duffield to "reflect and say sorry".

Climate Party - A single issue party. I can't find any reference to their views on sex-based rights/gender identity. Can't find much about the local candidate.

Conservative - I don't have a strongly ideological objection to voting Conservative - indeed I have done so in the past. They were my second party (30% agreement) in the vote for policies quiz. However I don't feel that I can vote for this Conservative party due to their some of their policies - particularly immigration (Rwanda policy), the national service policy and the planned cuts to Higher Education (which is the industry which I work in!). However I of course support the policy to amend the Equality Act to make it clear that sex = biological sex. The local candidate has also made it unequivacably clear that he supports women's rights to same sex care, sports and services.

Reform - no thanks.

A completely random independent youtuber who seems to have got people to legally change their name to his so that he can stand in 11 constituencies!

Labour - I haven't been impressed at all by Keir Starmer's responses to the sex/gender issue and the shameful treatment of Rosie Duffield by him and his party. I also have a DD who is about to start secondary school at an Independent school so I just don't feel that I can vote Labour. The sittting MP (who will be re-elected) is a shadow deputy minister and is very much in the same vein as Keir Starmer (he used to be his deputy at one point). He avoids engaging with this issue and when he does he waffles about "safe spaces".

Worker's Party - George Galloway's Party. No thanks.

Green - although I do agree with some of their policies around public transport and PR, the party as a whole is too far left for me and the local candidate is TWAW.

So writing this out has made it clear to me that it's probably got to be either LD or Conservative, but I really can't decide which! If I were a single issue voter the choice would be easy, but other issues such as education, immigration, transport, health etc are all important too and I just can't decide which way I should hold my nose. Anyone else feeling completely unable to decide?

Ok thank you I’ve looked and it’s 0.2% in it for a Labour majority. I’m even more confused 😬😬

postal vote so I need to decide tonight

Maybe look at this as a work in progress/Under Construction election.

The choices are dismal, the system is broken. No single party can deliver all the things that need delivering, or anything close.

Vote for who you think is best of a bad bunch and then maybe sign the Make Votes Matter petition for PR (You can also play Spot the party missing from the movement for change).

makevotesmatter.org.uk/sign-the-petition-we-believe-proportional-representation-should-be-a-priority-for-the-next-government/

👍🏻

And I would point people again to Scotland to see how our PR system is working out.

There are pluses and minuses:a broader spread, a greater variety of representatives, more coalitions, versus - very niche interests gaining disproportionate power, more coalitions, and worst of all imo - you cannot get rid of someone.

The polling report one puts my constituency closer than electoral calculus but still a massive labour lead, tories 2nd and reform 3rd quite a way behind. Every single poll says Labour will overturn the tory majority here. I'll vote against Labour simply so they are aware not everyone loves them. Even in seats Labour win they need to know they can't take their constituents for granted and they need to listen.

I have tried to arrange a meeting with my local Lab candidate to try and discuss GC issues (I didn't say that was why in the email!) but haven't had a response. Given that it is between them and the SNP in my seat I think I'll hold my nose vote for Labour and then spend the next four years as a thorn in the MPs side showing up to surgeries and emailing often. The country, including it's women, won't survive more of the current Tory party so they need to go but GC women need to be firing up for a 4 year fight on sex-based rights.

Yes. I don't think any political party deserves to crow about their performance, tbh. I suppose we want them all to be sober and sensible and thoughtful, rather than ebulliently victorius.

I don't think a thumping great 'super majority' is healthy at all.

I'm voting Tory.

a/ my constituency is LD/Tory knife edge
b/ the Tory isn't a tractor porn loon
c/ gender bandwagon is not single issue for me, it is a health scandal, a school scandal, a social and legal scandal
d/ the secret is blue or red the government's hands are tied. There's a lot less change they can effect than they'd like us to believe

I'm a former LD member, voted Labour most frequently, centre left, remainer. I'm now over my reluctance to vote for the Truss/Brexit/tractor porn/rees-mogg party.

Keep GI out of schools! Keep our kids away from cross sex hormones! Keep men out of single sex spaces!

I’ve decided independent or Labour. Tories have been a shit show and I absolutely couldn’t bring myself to vote for them. LD never on women alone and Reform never.

My constituency is a safe Labour seat so guess it doesn't matter what I do! Hard tho in seats where it will. Will prob spoil my ballot. What a shitshow

Finally had a reply from our prospective Labour candidate

The Labour Party believes it's incredibly important we protect female-only spaces and tackle misogyny wherever it's found.

let’s see shall we?

Saw an article (skim-read) in Unherd saying JKR is suggesting voting for the Communist Party if you are unsure what to do with your vote, due to their stance on women's rights.....and I remember a rehashed labour party breakaway group (SDP??) which seemed to support women's rights......
For the first time in forever (yes I just quoted a song from Frozen!) I really don't know who to vote for, and probably won't when I put my 'x' in the box....or do I spoil my ballot??? Is any notice taken of the number of spoiled ballots?? Argh!!!

Depending on how you choose to spoil your vote, it may still be counted as a vote. But for me, don’t spoil it, don’t waste your vote, women died to give us the privilege to shape our future.

This👆

Safe Labour seat. Was reluctantly voting labour until about 4 days ago when I suddenly realised I don't have to. I don't have to vote for a party that thinks my inescapable material reality is secondary to an identity men have the freedom to choose.

Open to voting independent candidate or radical lefty party - have voted communist in the past, after leaving labour. These small left wing parties are never going to rule the country but I wouldn't mind if they reminded Labour of their socialist roots and I'm genuinely on board with some of their policies.

Currently researching Communist and Workers party candidates for my area. To be clear I'd have voted for my labour MP if I liked her but sadly she's one of those women who thinks they can give consent on behalf of other women.

I know my vote will not change anything, so I'm voting Communist Party. Only party in my area that genuinely supports women's rights. If we'd had a Tory candidate who was not TWAW, I might have been tempted but they've made it easy for me to go elsewhere. No PoW. Labour will get in anyway but I can't bring myself to help them even though their candidate is great in other ways, but they are full-on, mad TWAW.
So I hear I'm a Communist now...

I feel your pain! We have a chance to flip a huge tory majority, in a seat that has never been labour, and I'm adding my vote, with reservations.
Maybe it's a hopeless cause, we'll know in about 36 hours!

Snowypeaks It is interesting how the Communists are the ones with the right-wing views on women now. Who would have thought it?

Snowypeaks We have a Christian People's Alliance candidate. They would appear to know what a woman is too but their manifesto lost me when they mentioned doing things not for the good of the population but for the glory of their god or some such.

SDP?
http://www.sdp.org.uk/manifesto

SEX-BASED RIGHTS

The liberal pursuit of individual autonomy and desire must be balanced by the common good. Some citizens feel at odds with the physiology and social role associated with their natal sex and can suffer distress. Transgender people should be treated with dignity and respect, in keeping with their acquired gender in most situations. However, these rights must be balanced against the need of natal females for safety and sporting fairness. Biological sex is real and politically significant. This requires an absolute stance on relevant legal definitions in some domains.
.
We support segregation by biological sex in sport. Fair competition is not secured if male-bodied transgender athletes are permitted to compete in women's sport and, in the case of contact sports, the risk of injury can increase significantly.

We support segregation by biological sex in prisons and women's refuges in order to safeguard the safety and privacy of natal females. Separate prisons or prison accommodation should be provided for transgender citizens to ensure their safety and privacy.

Transgender individuals wishing to change their sex marker should be allowed to do so. However, we support the continued necessity for medical gatekeeping in any legal change of sex marker. We oppose proposals that would allow someone to change their sex marker by self-identification only.

The Equality Act and Gender Recognition Act will be amended to ensure that sex-based rights which require protection in key domains are not undermined by a change in sex marker:
Healthcare spending and resources for gender dysphoric individuals, including long-term psychological intervention, should be provided at sufficient levels. Physical or drug-based medical treatments for gender dysphoria should be prohibited for anyone under 18 years of age.

We support the retention of biological sex and gender identity as distinct categories in public sector data gathering such as crime statistics, poverty metrics or public health research.

We support the use of plain English for discussions of biological sex in health and reproductive care.

I vote for conservative to preserve my rights and identity as a woman, no other party does that. Not one.

Secondly Labour WILL crash the economy as they always do, historically and factually, so I would prefer we kept our job and house. So a no brainer.

I could never vote for someone as untrustworthy as Starmer.

Also can't afford the eye watering taxes Labour are planning.

Will it get there so late?

So who do you think the Suffragettes would be voting for? Would they vote for a party who were planning to redefine their sex?

I hope so.

we posted Monday evening and it’s a Tuesday morning post so 🤞🤞
however I’m beginning to regret voting for Labour as I’m worried about taxes, and the trans issue but hey ho. I don’t think I could bring myself to vote Tory even though I’m not convinced by Starmer.