The UK political thread (formerly independence thread)

[Matty_the_Emo_Slayer]

The single odious Labour candidate nobody likes finds themselves without a seat.

This isn't strictly true as the party election material ranks their candidates in order they want them returned (usually in order of seniority) and urge voters to vote in that order. This way the party's chosen #1 will get returned in the first round of counting and the votes they got over the threshold (number of total votes cast divided by number of seats plus 1) will get transferred to the #2 and #3 candidates in subsequent counts. There's a real science to working out how your voters should vote in different wards to maximise the chances of all your candidates getting returned in the earliest round of counting possible, and voters going against this could really fuck up the party's chances as whole.

Say for example you dislike Labour's #1 candidate in your constituency, so you and a significant number of people in your ward put him as your third choice. Now there's a risk of none of the 3 candidates having enough votes to be elected in the first count and they all have to wait til subsequent counts for transfers from other parties/the Labour candidate with the least votes being eliminated, by which time 3 out of the 5 seats could be taken by other candidates, not 2 out of 5 as planned.

[Gandalf the Red]

Looks like Vince Cable is the only Lib Dem left in the race for the leadership as Ed Davey has pulled out.

So unless someone else comes forward, we've got the oldest average age of party leaders at the three main parties since the 1950s. Where Theresa May is actually the youngest at the age of 60. So much for the youngsters taking over politics.

[Slev]

The single odious Labour candidate nobody likes finds themselves without a seat.

This isn't strictly true as the party election material ranks their candidates in order they want them returned (usually in order of seniority) and urge voters to vote in that order.

However, that's not a requirement, so somebody hated (a prachuted in candidate or someone like Hazel Blears) will get trounced. Support for the party and support for the candidate are not teh same thing. This allows us to hold the candidate accountable!

[Tet]

Under STV, several adjacent consituancies (typically 5 in a city, 3 in the countryside) would join together to create one multi-member consituancy.

No, no, no! STV is a voting system. Nothing more, nothing less. It can equally be used for single member constituencies or multiple member constituencies. Nothing about STV implies one or the other. It's just a fairer way to count votes.

[Slev]

Well, you're right.
I'm thus aruing for STV with multi-member constituancies.

[houston4044]

Looks like Vince Cable is the only Lib Dem left in the race for the leadership as Ed Davey has pulled out.

So unless someone else comes forward, we've got the oldest average age of party leaders at the three main parties since the 1950s. Where Theresa May is actually the youngest at the age of 60. So much for the youngsters taking over politics.

AKA the people with the biggest influence on Brexit are unlikely to either be working or alive when it comes into full effect? Not exactly filling me with optimism here

[Gandalf the Red]

Or the people that actually have a bit of experience of life rather that some kid straight out of school that still likes Pokémon.

[houston4044]

The whole Brexit negotiations are going to breakdown because Davis won't trade his Blastoise for Tusk's Charizard I know it

Aye, I do agree with you to a point although having a few younger minister's around can be the shot in the arm we need at the moment; Corbyn's doing well but can't see his movement lasting more than a few more years at which point Labour either splits or you end up with a Miliband situation all over again, in a holding pattern circling the drain.

[Matty_the_Emo_Slayer]

Nothing wrong with still liking Pokemon, it's the people whose moral, social and political worldview is based entirely on Harry Potter that's the problem.

[Gandalf the Red]

Can I just ask who the fuck is still voting in this?

That's two votes over the last couple of days, it was 14 the other day.

The fact is that even the day after the election Labour had 4 votes on here and the Tories had 9. Voting on here won't change the result.

[WorMzy]

Maybe it's people showing how they're planning on voting in the next 2017 general election.

[Bizza]

I think it's good that people are still voting, it's a useful gauge of political opinion on here.

It's good to see the the ever increasing Labour vote too

[Metalchemyst]

Find the % of 'wasted' votes in your constituency:

https://action.electoral-reform.org.uk/ ... 0/action/1


71% in my Labour hold constit.

[houston4044]

Can I just ask who the fuck is still voting in this?

That's two votes over the last couple of days, it was 14 the other day.

The fact is that even the day after the election Labour had 4 votes on here and the Tories had 9. Voting on here won't change the result.

The youth vote getting out really late

[Gandalf the Red]

All I can say Is the country went downhill when they let women vote...