Why is turnout in local elections so low?

I haven't seen the turn out figures, geri, what we're they?

Could it have something to do with candidates and parties who CBA to canvass, campaign or have the common courtesy to put forward some reason for our vote?
When I turned up at our village polling station it was the first time I had any idea of who was standing or indeed in which party. No election literature or communications or posters of any sort.
And still nobody has undertaken to get the pot holes filled.

Turn out is low in our town because there really is no point. As I have said many times before on GN the LP could use monkeys as candidates and they would still win hands down. No competition equals absolute complacency and a town run by old timers living back in the day. No wonder young people are leaving in droves. It makes me angry and sad in equal measures.

Official figures for all areas not yet in, but it’s usually 30-40%,some places even lower than 30%. General election is usually double that figure. I didn’t get anyone canvassing, had a couple of leaflets that went straight into the recycling. No posters anywhere, you’d never know there was an election here.

gilly, I thought of you while listening to Jeremy Vine and someone rang in to say that in their area a bucket of manure with a red rosette would win!

They were probably from my town kitty . It’s such a shame that with no active opposition the ruling party need do nothing at all. They shove our council taxes up to the highest levels allowed, they vote themselves huge expense rises while cutting services and there’s nothing at all you can do about it.

It's because people are mostly completely uninterested in how their local area is run.

In my area a bucket of manure with a blue rosette would win and did in fact. But seriously,over the years we have become such a centralised society - las have fewer and fewer powers and less and less money. This overall trend has been evident for quite some time. I think there’s a real argument for pr in local elections ( ge as well) because even with a low turnout, we’d have a more accountable and representative council - and it might even encourage people to vote - oh wait a minute......

It is the same here but with the Conservatives.There is no hope it will ever change and the Conservative candidates is the only one who bothers to go door knocking.No need at all but I suppose it shows some effort to meet the voters.

My reply was to*gillybob*.Agree with youmaryeliza

Personally it’s because many people in these parts of the NE are still living in the past when heavy industry was the main employer. The elderly (mostly living in LA housing) have a bit of an “I’m alright Jack” attitude as they are well catered for and can’t see that there is nothing in the town for young people any more.

We seem to have the same problem then MaryEliza and Greenfinch with no active opposition.

There's no logic to this 'argument'. People don't turn out because buckets of manure with various coloured rosettes can be elected because of the rosette colour..

If people did turn out and vote for a different coloured rosette then perhaps the manure wouldn't get elected quite so often...

But then, the other saying that is trotted out as 'truth' with depressing regularity is 'politicians are all the same'. Which also promotes a 'why bother voting?' mindset

I still think that the truth is that people in general just don't care about local government.

P.S Having a moan about council tax and councillors is really 'caring'; it's just moaning

Isn't really 'caring'

Of course it’s moaning MazieD except all the moaning in the world won’t change anything here. A complacent ruling Labour council since 1929 looking after those who are retired from heavy industry, the public sector and those who haven’t done a days work in their lives . We have little private growth, enterprise or even shops anymore because there’s nothing here for the young.

Not low here, living in a market town in a large county with only market towns and villages, we know our councillors in our area.

Whilst I agree some candidates don't seem to make much of an effort, surely it is possible for us to find out things for ourselves. Too many people use the excuse that they didn't vote because they didn't know anything about the candidates.

We had no local election where I live but I was aware there were elections taking place, if I had received no literature I would have gone to the library and found some or looked it up online. I know who my MP is and who my County and Parish councilors are. I also know who the MPs are for the surrounding constituencies and I am not that into politics.

We have a Labour council but it certainly isn't "looking after those who are retired from heavy industry, the public sector and those who haven't done a days work in their lives".

If you're referring to the benefits people receive gillybob, then that's a national, not a local issue. The public sector in our area, as in all other areas whether there is a conservative or labour council, is cut to the bone. Our support services are being shut down due to the austerity approach of this government. Labour councils in poor areas like mine, are getting less government funding than wealthy areas in the SE. Why?
The absence of industry, enterprise, the way our town centres are full of boarded up shops etc isn't entirely the fault of Labour councils. I share the general frustration about this situation but not voting and voter apathy doesn't help anyone.
We need investment in our towns. We need to stop the encroachment on our few remaining green belts and build on the many brown fill sites closer to the town centres. I'd also say, we need more people living in the town centres. It seems to work in market towns and wealthy cities doesn't it.

And sadly, gilly your Council isn’t the only example. And when it’s the other way round, as it is here, those in greater need get neglected in the prioritisation of the use of increasingly scarce resources, Our council couldn’t spell affordable housing and only listen of course to the NIMBYs when issues of house building are discussed. But the majority here ( especially of older people) are at least comfortable and there’s job vacancies all over (albeit at minimum wage). Because the area is relatively affluent quite a lot of youngsters get help with buying houses from parents/grandparents and those that don’t move away if they can or live in poor conditions or at home. But even with help to buy a house, top earner families are hard up - travel costs to London where many work are huge and child care costs as well. PR would help surely to get better, less complacent councils.ab many many years ago when I lived in N Wales there were a lot of Independent Councillors - is that still the case?

Two earner not top earner - sorry

Yes Maryeliza We have 73 county councillors , power is with the conservatives and independants , 32 Independent, 19 conservatives, Libs 13, Labour 7, Plaid 2.

our town is labour controlled town councillors, we worked our socks off to achieve this .

But, Annie, how do we make people realise that it's no good complaining unless you have some input? Actually voting is the simplest thing to do but taking a bit of responsibility for the community and getting involved would be even better.

We have an issue in our village which is causing huge amounts of complaints on the local FB site about the Parish Council riding roughshod over the wishes of the villagers (ie people who have lived here all their lives rather than just 30+ years) but we still have 2 vacancies on the Parish Council which can't be filled. And, 'the villagers' do nothing more than complain.

It baffles me!

We have 53 out of 54 labour councillors in the entire borough ! Try taking them on . It’s an impossible task and they know it . Complacency at its worst . Oh and a 33% turnout to vote . Why bother ?