UK Election 2015 - The Moon Guide to Voting #tacticalvoting #voteselfish
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| A map of Britain resized by house prices leaves the south-east looking like the yolk of a fried egg, and the rest stringy offshoots. Photograph: Stuart Minzey/Getty Images. |
In order to vote you need to register and you only have to 20th April to do it. Changes made by this government have made it harder to register the traditional way, especially for students, but then it is also very easy on the thing called the interweb. You don't even have to provide your national insurance number, nor do you have to have your polling card to vote.
Just go to the Government website - which won "Design of the Year" in 2013 no less.
Just go to the Government website - which won "Design of the Year" in 2013 no less.
If you are not sure who to vote for then you can easily compare what your views are with each of the parties policies. There is the flashy uk.isidewith.com but I don't think it is quite as good as the one produced for the 2014 EU election by a collection of European researchers euvox2014.eu
But, because it could be said that the UK is a semi-democratic un-representative two party state, it is not always a good idea to actually vote for the party you most agree with and, in the vast majority of constituencies in England and Wales, the Russell Brand position is correct as a donkey with a blue or red rosette would win for either of the two main parties, even in this age of seven party TV debates, but if you are registered in one of these seats then at least you can vote and it will go towards the national vote of your favourite party.
VOTE TACTICALLY
There are a number of marginals where votes can count for much more and where tactical voting will be very important to the outcome of the election. The right have traditionally been far less likely to vote tactically but changing that it is probably the Conservatives best hope of getting a majority. This might be why Lord Ashcroft, the former Deputy Chairman of the Conservative party, is spending so much time and money polling the marginals and the BBC have put together the results brilliantly here.
It includes polling on the top 96 marginals, so you can check to see if you live in one and you can also go here to find your constituency by postcode and see the 2010 results.
It is the case that voting Green in many constituencies will increase the likelihood of a Conservative majority which is surely most Green party supporters least popular outcome. The Brighton seat Caroline Lucas is defending is the one place where a vote for Greens will actually count. To change this situation in England, it makes most sense for Green supporters to vote to stop either the Conservatives winning or to not vote Labour where a pro electoral reform candidate is challenging or is being challenged by Labour.
In Scotland it is a bit more complicated and depends on whether you think it would be best for Labour to be the largest party in parliament and so able to form a progressive coalition or agreement with a strong mandate, or if you think the more SNP MPs the better for progressive changes in the UK.
On the other end of the spectrum, a UKIP vote will, in many cases, help stop the Conservatives winning a majority which will then make a referendum on EU membership far less likely. The only exceptions are the two seats being defended by the two Conservative defectors. Mr Farage is standing in South Thanet which is a former safe Conservative seat but now it is a three way marginal in which Mr Farage is currently just ahead, but it is possible that if Labour were to win by one vote then it could be the vote that makes the Labour party the largest in Parliament...
Further info
On the battle for South Thanet
The Independent on Tactical Voting - Nose Pegs-Optional
The Daily Mail (no less) on the rise of the Rich Pensioner and the "dramatic fall" in the incomes of the young,
Paul Mason in the Guardian on the three tribes that make up the UK electorate.
YouGov on the How UKIP Voters Compare to the Conservatives - Older, Poorer but less Right- Wing.
It includes polling on the top 96 marginals, so you can check to see if you live in one and you can also go here to find your constituency by postcode and see the 2010 results.
It is the case that voting Green in many constituencies will increase the likelihood of a Conservative majority which is surely most Green party supporters least popular outcome. The Brighton seat Caroline Lucas is defending is the one place where a vote for Greens will actually count. To change this situation in England, it makes most sense for Green supporters to vote to stop either the Conservatives winning or to not vote Labour where a pro electoral reform candidate is challenging or is being challenged by Labour.
In Scotland it is a bit more complicated and depends on whether you think it would be best for Labour to be the largest party in parliament and so able to form a progressive coalition or agreement with a strong mandate, or if you think the more SNP MPs the better for progressive changes in the UK.
On the other end of the spectrum, a UKIP vote will, in many cases, help stop the Conservatives winning a majority which will then make a referendum on EU membership far less likely. The only exceptions are the two seats being defended by the two Conservative defectors. Mr Farage is standing in South Thanet which is a former safe Conservative seat but now it is a three way marginal in which Mr Farage is currently just ahead, but it is possible that if Labour were to win by one vote then it could be the vote that makes the Labour party the largest in Parliament...
Further info
On the battle for South Thanet
The Independent on Tactical Voting - Nose Pegs-Optional
The Daily Mail (no less) on the rise of the Rich Pensioner and the "dramatic fall" in the incomes of the young,
Paul Mason in the Guardian on the three tribes that make up the UK electorate.
YouGov on the How UKIP Voters Compare to the Conservatives - Older, Poorer but less Right- Wing.
