What will influence your vote this May?

mousemac Are you saying that if you had a really good Conservative local authority in your area you would vote for one that would be really bad and make your local area worse just because it wasn't Conservative. Wouldn't that be cutting off your nose to spite your face?

MOnica I think even in local elections one has to look at the wider picture. I'd do nothing to prop us this current government - an utter disaster for the country. I'm pretty affluent and live in a nice area - but I cannot subscribe to the 'I'm all right Jack, pull the ladder up' that seems to dominate local elections.

Our choices are two labour, two conservative and one Reform party candidate, which a quick online search revealed as Farage related.
I dont vote conservative, or any other right leaning party but know nothing about the two labour candidates. Looked online, nothing there.
Emailed local labour party and await response. This is a fairly poor south of London town which has been run down for years and despite being a long term Tory council and parliamentary seat, with so many promises, it remains run down.
I despair and cant understand the much debated
phenomen of the working class Tory vote.

I look forward people that are already involved with local issues that are prepared to take a more official role. Not busibodies genuine helpful people whobtake up or support local causes. I have a few in mind for the local elections already. They are, coincidentally Lib Debs. We already have a very strong Lib Deb local council already.

I don’t understand why people vote for the party and not the person in local elections. It doesn’t make a jot of difference to what colour the government of the country is. Don’t we all want the best person for dealing with local issues? Or are we happy to vote for a useless candidate with the misconceived idea that we’re giving Westminster the finger? Count me out of that, our LibDem chap is excellent and will continue to get my vote in the local election, though I vote differently in GEs.

i always vote in general and local elections. Firstly to at least to put my vote in as I think all women should given the efforts that had to be made to get the vote. Also as a person who has voted I feel I have the right to comment on promises fulfilled or not as the case may be. I also have my say when candidates come to the door! A long time ago just before an election, a conservative candidate came to the door. I asked him to move to the left and stood looking at him. He obviously wondered why but moved as asked. I then studied him for a moment and replied " Thankyou , I was pleased to at last get a look at you, as you have never bothered to make any contact, not deal with the important issues locally. I voted for the independant candidate , who went to council meetings and was often in the local paper , campaigning on local issues and providing help for people. Basically I am a Green follower but shall see how many and what candidates there are and go for the best that I consider have some possibility of succeeding!

I disagree. StoneofDestiny. Local elections should be fought on local issues. If more people voted on that basis we would have better local government and stronger local government bodies, prepared to take a stand against the national government (of any kind) on issues that affecte them.

We have a Conservative MP, but Lib Dem local council. As a result our MP is much more alert to local problems and more active in supporting local issues than his predecessor, in place when the local government was also conservative.

Germanshepherdsmum

I don’t understand why people vote for the party and not the person in local elections. It doesn’t make a jot of difference to what colour the government of the country is. Don’t we all want the best person for dealing with local issues? Or are we happy to vote for a useless candidate with the misconceived idea that we’re giving Westminster the finger? Count me out of that, our LibDem chap is excellent and will continue to get my vote in the local election, though I vote differently in GEs.

Totally agree - except there may be different parties involved

I usually vote Lib Dem for our city council because they care about local issues and can hold the balance of power.
I have recently stepped down as a town councillor, a voluntary role which was non political and I was co-opted almost three years ago. It is hard work not just representing your community but also dealing with staffing issues. I know more now about employment law than I did three years ago !!!
I ALWAYS vote as dies my daughter. She actually cried the first time she voted . She was so proud. Come on ladies use your one bit of power

Vote for the best person not the party.
I put that on a post a while ago and boy did I get harangued from some quarters who thought I was bonkers.

I will vote for the best person in my view, regardless who the Party is.

I always find it interesting that the turn out is always <40 %, then everyone has a moans when the Council don't get something right.

Conservatives have no chance in my area, but we do have two very good Green councillors so I always vote for them - anything to keep useless Labour out. And they are useless here in Bristol - thank god we get rid of our mayor next year and return to committee system, greens currenly have a majority of one on the council which means zero with a Labour mayor who only chooses his own party for his cabinet.

We have just had a letter in the post for the tory candidate. We never hear from any other candidates. even the police commissioner when they were elected. I think they are making assumptions about us based on where we live.

Susieq62

I usually vote Lib Dem for our city council because they care about local issues and can hold the balance of power.
I have recently stepped down as a town councillor, a voluntary role which was non political and I was co-opted almost three years ago. It is hard work not just representing your community but also dealing with staffing issues. I know more now about employment law than I did three years ago !!!
I ALWAYS vote as dies my daughter. She actually cried the first time she voted . She was so proud. Come on ladies use your one bit of power

Susieq I am very confused by the way our town council behaves.
Could you help me understand why town councillors are co-opted. Are they different positions to the elected councillors? I presume the elected and co-opted councillors get expenses, etc. I am so pleased to hear your role was non-political. Does this extend to people not having to be a member of any political party? Were you asked to join a particular party before you were co-opted?

Having never missed a vote in my life because it was such a struggle to get the vote in the first place. However the state this country is in I am undecided right now who to vote for in the General Election.
Our local council is mainly labour and a few independents but it is a disgrace the way the council has been selling land. There is so much opposition to what the local council has been allowing. How they have the nerve to expect people to vote for them is beyond me so again I am undecided.

We have eight uncontested wards in our local area, so the Conservative led councils will remain in place.

Obviously local issues aren’t enough to generate more candidates putting up.

Very local issues. So possibly the most actively involved candidate who also has lived here longer than me will get my vote. If they are Independent then so be it.

Absolutely had it with parliamentary politics including sadly Labour.

I won’t vote conservative ever, (would rather have all my teeth taken out)

Liberal/ Liberal Democrat? Bleh! do they even exist still

Green possibly.

For me Labour need to decide what they are for.
If they can’t achieve power now in the current turmoil then they should give up.

They’ve got a year: to stop just reacting to the Tories and be the opposition.
“When “they” go low, Labour should “go high” but will they? ….
Have they got the gumption and moral fortitude?

DaisyAnne

Susieq62

I usually vote Lib Dem for our city council because they care about local issues and can hold the balance of power.
I have recently stepped down as a town councillor, a voluntary role which was non political and I was co-opted almost three years ago. It is hard work not just representing your community but also dealing with staffing issues. I know more now about employment law than I did three years ago !!!
I ALWAYS vote as dies my daughter. She actually cried the first time she voted . She was so proud. Come on ladies use your one bit of power

Susieq I am very confused by the way our town council behaves.
Could you help me understand why town councillors are co-opted. Are they different positions to the elected councillors? I presume the elected and co-opted councillors get expenses, etc. I am so pleased to hear your role was non-political. Does this extend to people not having to be a member of any political party? Were you asked to join a particular party before you were co-opted?

Sometimes parish and town councils don't have any candidates, so people have to be co-opted.

Depending where you live, there are different levels of local governance. We have town, borough and county council, all with different responsibilities.

The Liberal Democrats certainly do exist

The Liberal Democrats have control of 31 councils in England, either with a Lib Dem majority or run as a single party administration.

I've taken the opportunity to vote in our town whenever I've been able to for the last 40+ years but I don't think I'll be accepted this time as I don't have a suitable photograph!!! And I'm not going to have one taken specially.

I'm more concerned about how money is spent on care provision and social housing such like more than potholes.

I'm not happy with the council as its been in the past but there have been recent changes. It's now a hung council between Lib Dems and Labour, and they are having to work together, which is a good thing.

One party has been knocking on doors and having local events where people gather to ask them what is needful with a great candidate, I have voted for her with my postal vote. The thing that has most come up is most is care and social housing needing repairs etc and not enough. That's partly because there is a very large social housing estate in our area.

Off that estate it gets back a bit to potholes and trees and care for the elderly.

The other major party has done nothing but put leaflets through our door - paid for delivery not volunteers! criticising the party I shall vote for. I don't like "negative politics".

Go online to your council there’ll be a link to voter photo ID
just follow it through and when it says so, simply choose a photo or take on and attach it to the reply and then submit.

I took a selfie with my iPad, picked the “best” of three (all equally horrid imo)

They will tell you if it’s acceptable and if you’ve followed the tips for an acceptable image then in a few days you will receive it through the post.

I don’t think it was necessary to introduce this “restriction” as the incidence of voter fraud here is so tiny as to be insignificant.
but ..I’LL BE DAMNED if I am going to be denied a vote because I (a) don’t drive and (b) don’t leave the country
It is possibly a portent of a creeping surveillance on citizens/subjects?

no election here this time. I always vote for anyone who has a chance of beating Labour, We have 15 councillors and all have been labour since before I moved here over 15 year ago.

growstuff

DaisyAnne

Susieq62

I usually vote Lib Dem for our city council because they care about local issues and can hold the balance of power.
I have recently stepped down as a town councillor, a voluntary role which was non political and I was co-opted almost three years ago. It is hard work not just representing your community but also dealing with staffing issues. I know more now about employment law than I did three years ago !!!
I ALWAYS vote as dies my daughter. She actually cried the first time she voted . She was so proud. Come on ladies use your one bit of power

Susieq I am very confused by the way our town council behaves.
Could you help me understand why town councillors are co-opted. Are they different positions to the elected councillors? I presume the elected and co-opted councillors get expenses, etc. I am so pleased to hear your role was non-political. Does this extend to people not having to be a member of any political party? Were you asked to join a particular party before you were co-opted?

Sometimes parish and town councils don't have any candidates, so people have to be co-opted.

Depending where you live, there are different levels of local governance. We have town, borough and county council, all with different responsibilities.

Thanks growstuff. That's as I thought. So, it seems to be the case that there were more than three places up for election on the Town Council, but only three stood. So no election takes place. The three (Conservative) Councillors who are therefore 'elected by default' will then be the people who co-opt those (all Conservative) to the other seats available.

Manipulation and sometimes blatant rule-breaking seems to have been happening forever. It's not that councillors are all Conservative that bothers me. Personally I would rather they weren't but I imagine it can happen with different flavours of politics in other areas. It is just it feels very undemocratic.

Anyone standing as anything other than Conservative is torn to shreds by "the Party", including blatant lies told. I wonder if it would be possible to start getting us used to PR by bringing it in at the lowest level and then moving up to higher levels of councils before using it for Parliament. PR might make more people feel they could stand and stand up to the feeling of entitlement it seems all parties can have.

I will vote green in the local election .... the candidate has been in post for some years and she is excellent ... visible and active. She has improvements here in our tiny village.

As to the GE I will vote tactically to get a government change.

The Conservatives now fear the worst and are meeting in all sorts of places in many guises to find any way to sway the voter- taxes, anti-foreigners and immigrants, saying Brexit was ruined by do-gooders, woke and the ECHR and such nonsense. stirring hatred to minimise their losses. What is so sickening and beyond worrying, is that they are succeeding with some people!

So Lib Dem locally for now, and tactically when the Big Day comes, which will probably be Lib Dem too.