General election 2015

The thought of which could drive English voters to Tory/Lib Dems so as not to have a parliament where control is in the hands of celts.

Certainly a guy on Radio 2 just now, who I overheard on the builders' radio. Apparently we should hope for a Conservative/DUP coalition because they are 'our people'.

Like in 1997 when they voted for a government of Blair, Brown, Cook, Robertson etc, and regretted it so much they voted it in the next couple of elections as well?

Latest results:

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After the big debate I came away thinking 'if I could vote SNP, I would'. I agree with practically everything they have to say apart from wanting an independant Scotland. Them and Labour would be a positive result for me

I've always believed that the democratic system we have works best if everyone votes for who they want in parliament.
But... this is the first time in my voting life when I am considering voting tactically.

Should I be honest with my vote and respect the system or do I lay my vote where I believe it stands the greatest chance of being effective...?

The latter.
I'd like to vote for the greens but that is essentially just a vote for another tory coalition so I'm voting Labour. The left (if one can include Labour, that is) are pretty fragmented across a few parties so being tactical and going for a majority party would be much more useful.

Does the system respect you?

The left (if one can include Labour, that is) are pretty fragmented across a few parties

I definitely found this in the debates, one right wing non-mainstream party vs the various lefties doesn't bode well for any individual left wing party

I would argue that there isn't actually a proper left wing party that exists Britain-wide. The Greens are the next best thing in England but they're not that, and the SNP are close but it's hard to see them as anything other than a single issue party. That's why the elections for so many people is a least-worst thing.

It would be great being a greedy elitist cunt or a xenophobic sexist cunt so you could actually vote for someone you believed in.

Is your seat a marginal?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/general-election-2015/11527109/Has-your-constituency-already-been-won-in-the-2015-general-election-Find-our-here.html

Mine is a safe Con seat.

I would endorse this collab.

This is it really. It's just a shame that the majority of the population are so disengaged that they don't really understand how the voting system works.

I've had a lot of friends gleefully tell me they're 'voting Green' recently, without knowing a) who their local candidate is and b) without knowing whether they live in one of the very few seats that the Greens actually have a chance of winning (they don't). It's great that people are taking an interest, but it would help if people actually understood how FPTP works.

Looks like we will be retaining IDS and I can just ignore the whole election debate then.

#Democracy

Whilst I can see why people vote tactically, I disagree with it.

For example: if the greens do well this election (vote tally), then it'll highlight to Labour that they need to cover more lefty ground and it'll bring more PR/votes to the Greens in the years to come.

Non-tactical voting also makes for a more valid coalition government (which it looks like we're definitely going to have).

Vote for the policies you agree with and consider the long-terms effects of your vote beyond this election.

We'll have this most Tory looking of Tories again.

Should I be honest with my vote and respect the system or do I lay my vote where I believe it stands the greatest chance of being effective...?

Well that's up to you, I have done both in the past, but am likely to vote tactically this time because:
a) the current MP for my constituency is Conservative, and I am voting against them in the hope of a hung parliament
b) my constituency is marginal so my vote might actually make a difference this time (it never has in the past)

Hope that UKIPS vote is a joke

I'd like to know your reasoning behind this. I'm not convinced it's true. I also think that what looks to be a multiple term era of coalition politics in this country is a prime opportunity to try and increase the level of Green representation in parliament.

One of the interesting things is that there are a lot of people claiming they would vote Green but are going to vote "tactically". I'm not sure of what tactics people think they're employing but keeping Conservatives out isn't a tactic, it's an objective. A lot of people who claim to be voting tactically are actually just voting for the largest national opposition party. That may not be the best opposition candidate in the constituency. Despite the current coalition position, a Lib Dem candidate beating a Conservative candidate would be a better outcome than a forlorn vote for a Labour candidate. Afterall, with Green confidence and supply, a short-term Labour-regions coalition lame duck governance with a Cons to Lib Dem shift wouldn't be worse than a Con-Lib alliance. Afterall, it did work for Wilson.

One thing that does seem certain. If you vote tactically, you may not get the government you want or need but you will get the government you deserve.

What's the candidate most likely to depose them?

Whilst I can see why people vote tactically, I disagree with it.
For example: if the greens do well this election (vote tally), then it'll highlight to Labour that they need to cover more lefty ground and it'll bring more PR/votes to the Greens in the years to come.
Non-tactical voting also makes for a more valid coalition government (which it looks like we're definitely going to have)
Vote for the policies you agree with and consider the long-terms effects of your vote beyond this election.

This is a much clearer way of articulating what I am struggling with.

Or I could say
Should I vote for who I want (Greens) or should I put my vote behind the best chance of kicking the Torys in the fucking pants...?

As a privately educated, white, middle class, employed, mid income, home owning, hetero male.... yes it does.
#AverageJoe

If your aim is to keep a certain party out of government then it's a tactic to vote for the candidate most likely to beat that party's candidate - even if they are not the candidate that you favour for any other reason.
Nobody ever gets the government they want because even one-party governments, internally, are coalitions. Tory leaders, and Prime Ministers, have been struggling for 30 years to keep their internal coalition together when it comes to Europe, for example.

I'll be voting green because I prefer their policies (being more left-wing, rather than the environmental side) and I know my vote will have no effect whatsoever, beyond demonstrating the need for PR. I'm happy with that.

It's funny isn't it. In some ways this coalition has been more coherent than some of Tony Blair's when he was having significant back bench revolts.

I thought it would fall apart in the first year but they have managed to be fairly effective (they have done stuff as opposed to the stuff they have done having a positive effect).