Last Thursday, I didn’t vote. I
could wax lyrical about my vote being wasted, about not wanting to vote for the
lesser of two evils and about Epping Forest being a safe council, but the truth
is that I didn’t vote because I simply couldn’t be bothered. We had it all
worked out, the kids were off school as their school had been turned into a
polling station so we were going to walk down to the polling station and try to
explain to them what all the fuss was about and then vote. However, firstly it
rained so we didn’t walk, secondly I worked late and it then took me two hours
to get home from work so by the time I got home I was tired and in a bad mood;
in short no mood to vote!
Would I have voted if it was a
general election? Maybe. Would I have voted if it was a Ken Versus Boris
character showdown? Maybe. Obviously I don’t know and only time will tell. But
I wasn’t the only one who clearly just didn’t have the interest or passion to
vote. Last Thursday’s turnout was the lowest in 12 years, only 33%. How this contrasted
to news at the weekend from the French election where just under 80% turned up
to vote for either Nicholas Sarkozy or Francois Hollande. It was a two horse
race and one that would determine the economic and social direction of the country
over the next five years.
So are the French just more
passionate about their politics? Are they optimistic? Do they think their world
is going to change because they have a new President? Are they just ever hopeful that their lives
will get better? Maybe there are more differences between us and our European
partners than we like to think. So where do we go from here? David Cameron and
Nick Clegg have declared that they are sorry about the state of our country and
they will try harder in future. Ed Milliband on the other hand, and declared victory
and that the people have spoken. ‘Really Ed?’ I shouted at the TV on Friday, ‘Do
you really think that victory is yours when only a third of people actually voted?
Do you really think that the British people have given you a mandate to rule?’
The British people only told you that they couldn’t be bothered and that the
vote wasn’t important enough.
So, the question is what will
make the vote important enough to make the effort, to interrupt our busy lives
and actually get our backsides down to the polling station and cast our votes?
One of the great things about the French election was the fact that every vote
counted. Every single person who voted actually helped Hollande to victory and
Sarkozy to defeat. Every single person went to the ballot box and cast their
vote knowing it would be counted. Even those who spoilt their ballot papers to
show that no candidate met their requirements still turned up at their polling
station. The way that the French felt compelled to participate in their
political process is admirable and for the first time, I actually feel we have
a great deal to learn from our cousins across the channel.
So where am I going with this? I
can only make apologies to Emily Davison and my mother for not voting. I can
only promise that I will, in spite of my tiredness and arguments with the north
circular that I will vote next time around. But what do I want in return? My
list is quite small but important (i think)
I want candidates with creditability.
I don’t care if my representatives went to Eton, lives in a Victorian house
backing onto Clapham Common, or if their father was a university professor
anymore than if their father was a coal miner, they grew up in an estate in Tottenham
or they are a single parent. What I want them to be is honest. when they are struggling;
I want to know about it. When they are unsure of what to do for the best, I
want to know about it. I want my politicians to be normal human beings who
laugh and cry when watching TV, who give their kids a happy meal occasionally.
If you can find me this representative...
I’ll promise I’ll vote next time!
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