have you voted yet? are you voting?

I say absolutely bloody true. In Brum the returning officer reckons that about 20,000 postal votes that were applied for went unused and John Humphreys is spitting blood that someone fraudulently used his (if I was going to defraud someone, it wouldn't be him, deffo). Anyway my polling rage has been calmed somewhat by Daisy this morning. When we went to get in the car we realised that someone had put a big vote conservative placard at the end of our drive, with a plea to vote for local candidate Jeremy Hunt. As a joke I handed Daisy a marker pen and asked him if he fancied a bit of tactical consonant changing. He looked very puzzled and said, "But what's funny about Jeremy Hump?" Bless.

i'd heard gorgeous george was doing well in bethnal green - so that wasn't too much of a surprise..did anyone see his antics at the post match interviews? hilarious...he's going to be fun in parliament

The whole thing is on video on the Beeb website.

The Lib dems won in Southwark (no suprises) and I seem to have an unsightly rash in my chest this morning and was wondering if there could be a connection.

...on my chest even.

ger down there and get down there...grrrrrrrr

Got there at 7.30am. Had the usual row with the returning officer about how this country doesn't have secret ballots. Cast votes in national, county and borough elections. (forced to vote Independant in borough as there was no Labour candidate) As usual told the party workers outside who were asking for polling numbers to fuck off.

I posted mine a few days back. wouldn't want to go to the polling station in my constituency in case I catch fleas.

I performed my democratic right as a member of the United Kingdom and but a big cross next to Mr LABOUR at 8.30 a.m. Still, I am annoyed that there is no other reasonable choice other than the right wing, elitist, hate-single-mums, fascistic racist mysogenistic kill-the-poor Tory cheating greedy self-serving bastard party. I couldn't vote for a marginal party, regardless of how commendable they were, mainly because they are mostly one-issue parties. And again, this election is not so much about voting FOR Labour but AGAINST the disaster that would be the Tory party in office again. Rightly or wrongly, there is no credible opposition to Labour. I had secretly hoped the Lib Dems woukld creep into second place by this election, but I suppose too many of those 60 something Tory blue-rinses are atill alive...give it time is all I say. How many of you would vote GREEN in a marginal constituency, if you knew your vote really counted, and if cast wrongly could let the Conservatives in? [%sig%]

i'm going to vote in the next hour, my cross is going to the lib dems, because they are a party that only exists to be elected, they don't have any other grand plan except that, to get voted in. they'll give votes to prisoners, switch to proportional representation, they'll promise you extra teachers/nurses/policemen/zebra crossings, they'll promise you anything as long as you vote for them, oh and the leader of the lib dems is a really nice and trustworthy alcoholic, so the lib dems get my vote. god knows what they'll do if they're in power, but hey, who cares right?

I'm voting labour.... mainly because there's no other choice that I could live with... and I don't have a clue about tactical voting in this borough. You know a lot of women died so I can vote... and I find the whole experience a wee bit annoying.... there's something wrong with that. How is everyone by the way? Been away a while.

We're just off to the polling station. What a choice! The vampire, the alcoholic or the war criminal. I genuinely do not know which way I'm going to vote...

I will not vote. There is nothing that engages me in this election. No heroes out there, just dumbed-down media whores. By not voting , I guess I am vothing. Cheers

By not voting, Ralph, you are definately NOT voting or making any credible statement. There is nothing noble, high-handed or indeed worthwhile by staying at home with the rest of the unthinking, uncaring masses who do not understand what people went through to get the vote in this country. By not voting you are making a mockery of their struggle. Just look at South Africa when the blacks got the vote - millions queuing for three days. If you do not want to vote - you go to the polling station and register your dissentian by adding a box called 'Mickey Mouse' or 'None of the Above' and put your cross next to that. If the 47% or so of people who didn't bother to vote did that last election, the voice of dissention would've been heard and it would have rocked the election to it's foundations. By not voting, you are doing nothing, you are changing nothing, you have no voice and therefore ultimately no right to moan about politics in the future. It quite saddens me that people think staying at home is saying anything at all, it really does...

"i'm going to vote in the next hour, my cross is going to the lib dems, because they are a party that only exists to be elected, they don't have any other grand plan except that, to get voted in. they'll give votes to prisoners, switch to proportional representation, they'll promise you extra teachers/nurses/policemen/zebra crossings, they'll promise you anything as long as you vote for them,?" Dear, oh dear Bingo. If you're going to have a go at the Lib Dems in your cleverly disguised ironical fashion you could at least mention their bad policies - such as their hilarious tax plans that involve screwing both the very rich and the very poor to give cash and free stuff to people in the middle (who coincedentally happen to be the group most likely to vote).

There I was in the polling booth with my bit of paper and as I stood there a million thoughts filled my head. I thought of the booming economy, the additional money poured into the health service, the fact we are now the 4th biggest economy in the world, I thought of low unemployment, low interest rates, and extra money for schools and the police, I thought of my own improving economic circumstances and of how hard Tony and his team have worked to rescue this country from the mess made by the Tories, I thought of how much Labour needs my vote and how in my constituency one vote could make all the difference, as I stood there I could even hear Tony's voice pleading with me personally for my vote, begging me to give him one more chance........and then I voted Green.

I voted Labour because you do, don't you?

As I posted my vote I closed my eyes and dreamed of Robert Peel and Benjamin Disraeli and the 1834 Poor Law Amendment which created the workhouses and I sighed.

I am so jealous. Instead of voting (because I can't, tough, sorry - they said) I am going to write a very stinky letter to whoever my MP is tomorrow.

BTW my mother in law has just informed me that she will be voting tory because she met the candidate at the pony club the other day and he was rather dishy. I am so beyond livid...

Benjamin Disraeli was born in my house. I don't know why i felt it necessary to share that.

Well, the Labour majority where I am went down from 22% to 8%. So we didn't kick out Charles Clarke, but I like the look of those numbers. You wanna go live in Bucks, Jude. Conservative stronghold - because of all the rich people.

Your ma-in law is a typical tory, Rachy.

Really Vivky! That's fascinating -do you have a blue plaque?

Yes I know. Vile old baggage. Uncharacteristically, I feel a bit sorry for the tory guy because, having been saddled with the name Hugo Arbuthnot, he couldn't really do anything else with his life, could he?

I was at work by 7.00 so will have to vote tonight. The f***king BNP are standing in our constituency, so I may take the contents of the cats litter tray with me in case I meet one at the polling station. Their election leaflet was an abomination, featuring a cartoon of a lorry arriving at Dover loaded with illegal immigrants.

BNP/Tories what is the difference? Both playing the race card as far as I can see.

Just rounded up the last of the core Labour voters in Come-to-Piddle and whisked them to the polling station in the Roberts Jag. Fisticuffs early on between Ron Tate - former trades union activist at the now defunct Piddleminster carpet factory - and a BNP lardy-cake who was loitering near the polling station entrance. The Bob nobber managed to squeeze his considerable bulk between the two of them, but not before I'd given the BNP twat a Shearer-like elbow in the ribs. Ah, the joy of election day! Off now to Piddleminster Town Hall to expose myself to the Tory hunting lobby. Chin up, voters!

that galloway/paxo clash was a highlight of the coverage - paxo was rubbish against galloway..galloway did exactly what it says on the tin

Georginho definitely handed Paxman his arse back on a plate, which was, in a sense good for the country. First good deed from the master of bluster, and perhaps his last. While I do hope that Pax finally succumbs to the venereal disease which fuels his latest ravings, it's annoying to see G held up as some sort of decent politician. He's a c*nt, just like Jim Maclean. 'Mon the Arabs! Being from Scotchland, I had to vote SNP. It's written in an old charter or something.

Yup Jude... sure do.... at least we have a plaque... think it's blue. I live with law students and I told them he'll haunt them if they do badly in their exams...

Well just been and thrown it away on the LibDems who don't stand a hope of winning here. I would have voted green, but I can't stand hippys. The systems broke. I don't know how to fix it, but it's definitely broke.

Before I decided to quit work for the religious life I was laying plans to emigrate. I'd come to the conclusion it's the only way. even the Tories could not dismantle the "nanny state" quickly enough even if they had power for the next 50 years. btw- Doies anyone think proportional representation would be better than the current system?

Well yes, as my dear dad said in 97, don't get too excited about it [new labour winning], they'll only let us down and then we'll be up shite creek. And look what happened...

I find it interesting that *here* on the phorums I am in the minority (maybe even on my own!) as a conservative voter but here in the office I am in the majority - 4/5 of my team vote blue. This was the same in my last company where 5/8 voted Tory.

Well what would expect in the FT offices? Cloth caps and moleskin trousers?

Blair. For having the balls to stick by his guns. * Perhaps I should refries that *

I wrote 'murderers' across my little bollox paper. I expect to be put under house arrest or worse any day soon. It's a good job I'm emigrating.

Well we're not actually "finance people". I work with the techies. The boys don't even wear ties and I wear trainers. And my last company was a scientific publishing house. No, I have a theory that young things like me who believe in personal responsibility for ones situation and going from the ground up, will, if necessary move to London where there are more opportunities - rather than staying in our bleak sururban hometowns bitching that there is no work and expecting someone to hand us something for nothing.

Don't such materialistic young things end up having a spiritual crisis though and end up living off the church?

I will not be "living off" the Church. I can bring a salary to the community which has charitable status or work in one of their schools (which also have charitable status). So I still "pay my way" but don't pay tax. Then I will be MUCH happier and shall stop moaning! Of course that wasn't the motivation but it is a big bonus.

just make sure they don't have the temerity to have fleas eh.

:o)

and I'm not materialistic - I don't care that 'll have to wear crap shoes for the rest of my life and drive a Nissan - I just think 'hand-outs' to people are not good for them and keep them in 'victim' status.

What does temerity mean?

Jude you are not in a minority, thus far including yourself I've counted six votes on this thread going to one of the two Tory parties. In my book that's a Tory landslide.

"No, I have a theory that young things like me who believe in personal responsibility for ones situation and going from the ground up, will, if necessary move to London where there are more opportunities" Well, yes but London has voted for Ken Livingstone at the last two mayoral elections. It's interesting, though. I know plenty of middle-aged and old Tories but not many young Tories. Most of the young right-wing people I know are researchers for New Labour MPs.

You're probably right, Jude. You should campaign to have the chariable status removed from the church... to reduce victimisation :o)

What do you expect, Jude - so many writers have been put through the mill by small-minded "conservative" morons mounting moral crusades against perceived depravity (or, in America, because the books happen to feature too many black people or depict disobedience to parents). Thank goodness for sleazy rock videos and blasphemous operas, if only to deflect their pea brains on to more visible targets. Whereas office people ... well, they're too busy scheming how to get an increment or benefit from a new grading structure or get on by dropping others in the shit, just so they can buy a new 4x4 or pay for Lucinda's piano lessons or Toby's private tutor or that cottage in France even though they hate Europeans. Mercifully my office colleagues are northern IT people with some modicum of intelligence and social awareness, but the officious London bank staff twats I can't stand. (not you Jude, at least you're funny!). I voted Lib Dem cos ours is a very safe Labour seat, but in a marginal I'd vote for whoever was most likely to beat the Tories.