Who will win the General Election?

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Fatty eats roadkill
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 4:20 pm

Plus the only people who can vote for the person who could be prime minister are those who live in their constituency and then if they are elected the parties involved who make them their leader, then it has to be confirmed by the Queen!
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Bogratsteve » Fri Apr 17, 2015 5:00 pm

Fatty eats roadkill wrote:This sort of s*** boils my blood. You do not vote for a prime minister as that position is not for us to decide. This is not America or a republic. You vote for a candidate in your constituency who you feel best represents your view points and interests.

The current bollox of "voting for who would be best prime minister" is why the political class has gone to rat s*** because people are fixated on a faux American electoral system!
Don't agree with you very often but on this I do, I vote for the best local candidate based on what they are saying not who will be PM

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by PaulMJohnson » Fri Apr 17, 2015 5:48 pm

Darlo_Pete wrote:The Conservatives would rely on any UKIP seats they win and the Ulster Unionists, but it won't add up to what the SNP will bring to the table.
I'm not sure it's entirely right to say the Conservatives would rely on the Ulster Unionists. The Conservative Party is actually called The Conservative & Unionist Party after they merged with the Liberal Unionists in the early 20th century.

Conservatism and Unionism have always been reasonably interchangeable.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Fri Apr 17, 2015 6:37 pm

Bogratsteve wrote:Don't agree with you very often but on this I do, I vote for the best local candidate based on what they are saying not who will be PM
This is a good way to think - however, where I live the Conservatives have such a large majority that it almost seems a waste of time to turn up, regardless of which way I decide to vote.

:thumbdown:
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by PaulMJohnson » Fri Apr 17, 2015 6:41 pm

theoriginalfatcat wrote:
Bogratsteve wrote:Don't agree with you very often but on this I do, I vote for the best local candidate based on what they are saying not who will be PM
This is a good way to think - however, where I live the Conservatives have such a large majority that it almost seems a waste of time to turn up, regardless of which way I decide to vote.

:thumbdown:
Yeah, same for me. While I'm living in the US, I'm still eligible to vote in Horsham (where I lived before I moved out here), where the Conservatives last got less than 50% of the vote in the 1960's (and they still won then). Pretty pointless voting (though I still have).

To be honest, it's the same in the US. It's the Presidential elections next year, and nobody will even campaign in California - the Democrats will win without trying (although they will come here to raise a crap ton of money from Hollywood and Silicon Valley). I can't vote here, what with not being a citizen, and the fact there is no point in voting here makes me not want to take citizenship.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlogramps » Fri Apr 17, 2015 6:58 pm

Fatty eats roadkill wrote:This sort of s*** boils my blood. You do not vote for a prime minister as that position is not for us to decide. This is not America or a republic. You vote for a candidate in your constituency who you feel best represents your view points and interests.
That's not entirely accurate Fatty. You're correct in that we don't directly elect a Prime Minister, but when you vote for a candidate, you are in effect also voting for a party.

And because of the way our system works (the leader whose party has a majority of seats, or is the leader of the biggest party in a coalition, becomes PM) that means you are, indirectly, voting for a leader.

Therefore it's perfectly legitimate to decide who you vote for on the basis of the party leader.

People do not just vote on the basis of who the local candidate is. They vote on a huge, incalculable range of issues. That includes whether they like the person who, if they vote for a particular party, could become PM.

How the party performs beyond a local level is, for some, a more important issue than the local candidate.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 7:08 pm

sorry gramps you are wrong. If that is the way it works then why did the main parties shy from AV?
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 7:09 pm

Plus a party leader can be removed at the whim of their party.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 7:19 pm

Nigel farage is a popular leader. Would you vote UKIP?
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlogramps » Fri Apr 17, 2015 7:33 pm

Fatty eats roadkill wrote:sorry gramps you are wrong. If that is the way it works then why did the main parties shy from AV?
I'm sorry, I really don't understand what AV has to do with anything. I'll need you to explain that one.

Explain to me why I'm wrong. We do, indirectly, elect a Prime Minister (we vote for a local candidate/party, who form the largest party). The leader does come into that consideration when people vote, as much as you dislike that.

If you want the reasons why the big two opposed AV, it was because of vested interests - it would have been less likely to produce overall majorities, which is bad for the Tories and Labour.
Fatty eats roadkill wrote:Nigel farage is a popular leader. Would you vote UKIP?
Not personally, but some will, and some will do so because they like Nigel Farage. I'd imagine some UKIP voters agree with what he has to say, or prefer him in comparison to other leaders.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 8:04 pm

If it was just about the leaders why have an election for the others. Just have a national vote for the leader and let them pick their mates to run the country. A party leader can only do what their party dictate.

This is why you should choose your MP for what they actually stand for. Unless you live in Oxfordshire or South Yorkshire you do not directly elect the party leader.

It isn't rocket science
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Fri Apr 17, 2015 8:05 pm

Maybe I'm just being too simplistic and old fashioned in my views.

Basically the party leader is accountable to the MP who is elected in the constituency you vote in.

Phil Wilson will be my MP even though I will not be voting for him.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlogramps » Fri Apr 17, 2015 9:52 pm

Fatty eats roadkill wrote:If it was just about the leaders why have an election for the others. Just have a national vote for the leader and let them pick their mates to run the country. A party leader can only do what their party dictate.

This is why you should choose your MP for what they actually stand for. Unless you live in Oxfordshire or South Yorkshire you do not directly elect the party leader.

It isn't rocket science
No, but it's more complex than you're making out.

Some people choose to vote on local issues. Some choose because of the national picture. For a lot of people, it's a combination of the two.

I respect your views Fatty, but I disagree. The merits of the party leader is something I will consider when voting. It'll be the same for plenty of others across the country.

You might dislike it, but people will vote on the issues that matter to them. If strength of party leader is one of those, so be it. People are entitled to base their vote on whatever issues they like.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Fatty eats roadkill » Sat Apr 18, 2015 3:09 am

I'm not saying they can't gramps. What I am saying is don't complain that MP's are s*** when they've based their vote on a person they cannot elect.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by loan_star » Sat Apr 18, 2015 10:23 am

Two reasons I can't vote Labour....

1- Balls was in the treasury at the time of the crash, they saw it coming and because they had spent more than they could afford anyway, by the time they had bailed out the banks like they had to, the nations finances went from dodgy to an absolute mess. Yet they still pretend like their actions had nothing to do with the mess they left behind.

2- Miliband is a hypocrite. Forced fuel bills up by adding a green tax and yet has the nerve to pretend he's disgusted at high fuel bills and puts all the blame on the fuel companies, forgetting his part in the price hikes.

Theres plenty other valid reasons why these clowns don't deserve my vote but I can't be arsed to spend all day listing them all. Tories are best of a bad bunch IMO.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlo_Pete » Sat Apr 18, 2015 10:42 am

theoriginalfatcat wrote:
Bogratsteve wrote:Don't agree with you very often but on this I do, I vote for the best local candidate based on what they are saying not who will be PM
This is a good way to think - however, where I live the Conservatives have such a large majority that it almost seems a waste of time to turn up, regardless of which way I decide to vote.

:thumbdown:
It's the same in this area, as the vast majority of North-East seats would always go to Labour. Most elections are decided by probably less than 100 marginal seats.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlo_Pete » Thu Apr 23, 2015 12:32 pm

Only 2 weeks to go and if you believe the opinion polls, the parties standings are the same now as when the General Election was announced. I'd expect more movement as we get nearer the election.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by loan_star » Thu Apr 23, 2015 8:07 pm

A poll in the mirror has the tories 4 points ahead. Bet the editor didn't like publishing that!

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by PaulMJohnson » Fri Apr 24, 2015 1:23 am

loan_star wrote:A poll in the mirror has the tories 4 points ahead. Bet the editor didn't like publishing that!
I'm sure the editor is fine with it.

If you watch them, polls in Tory leaning papers (Telegraph, Mail etc.) are tending to show Labour close or ahead of the Tories, and polls in Labour leaning papers (Mirror, Guardian etc.) tend to show the Tories in the lead.

If the parties base thinks they are behind, they're more likely to come out to vote.

The polls show what the people paying for the polls want them to show.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlogramps » Fri Apr 24, 2015 10:03 am

Opinion polls during the campaign should be banned.

They're too easy to manipulate and can distort what's actually going on.

People should vote for the candidate or party that they want to vote for, not someone who they think will stop another candidate getting in.

Tactical voting is dangerous and not democratic.
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlo_Pete » Fri Apr 24, 2015 12:34 pm

You get such a range in the opinion polls it's impossible to knwo which one to believe.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by AndyPark » Fri Apr 24, 2015 5:17 pm

I've read today that Cameron is willing to link up with Farage if he wins the election.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Darlo_Pete » Fri Apr 24, 2015 7:46 pm

I don't think UKIP will win enough seats to make a difference, but I could be wrong.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by joejaques » Fri Apr 24, 2015 7:46 pm

AndyPark wrote:I've read today that Cameron is willing to link up with Farage if he wins the election.
Ever since UKIP gave the Torys (and all the others) a fright in the EURO elections, Cameron has been moving toward them anyway, in the hope of heading off further defections. So why are you surprised? :roll:
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by AndyPark » Fri Apr 24, 2015 7:52 pm

joejaques wrote:
AndyPark wrote:I've read today that Cameron is willing to link up with Farage if he wins the election.
Ever since UKIP gave the Torys (and all the others) a fright in the EURO elections, Cameron has been moving toward them anyway, in the hope of heading off further defections. So why are you surprised? :roll:
Just didn't think Cameron would fancy joining forces with Farage.

They have so many different issues/ideas on things.

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by TDS » Fri Apr 24, 2015 8:55 pm

None of them care, really. All chameleons changing ideas to get in.

Really struggling this time. Nobody deserves my vote!


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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by theoriginalfatcat » Sat Apr 25, 2015 9:59 am

[quote="TDS"]None of them care, really. All chameleons changing ideas to get in.

Really struggling this time. Nobody deserves my vote!

Ditto!


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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by joejaques » Sat Apr 25, 2015 1:33 pm

theoriginalfatcat wrote:
TDS wrote:None of them care, really. All chameleons changing ideas to get in.

Really struggling this time. Nobody deserves my vote!

Ditto!


It seems that Labour are kinder to animals though, Badgers and Foxes!

And the Greens are kinder to trees. :roll:
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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Henley » Sun Apr 26, 2015 6:58 am

Two postal votes for UKIP have already been sent off from us. It won't change who wins the seat (Tory - which I'm happy with) but it will hopefully send an arrow across the bow of the Tories on the EU/immigration if UKIP get c. 15% of the vote (even though they'll likely only get 2-3% of the seats).

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Re: Who will win the General Election?

Post by Vokuhila » Sun Apr 26, 2015 10:09 pm

I don't know how anyone can vote for UKIP and not feel a bit dirty afterwards.

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