Tactical voting
Right. On principle, I have always been appalled and offended by the idea of tactical voting, but in Sheffield Hallam, it is a reality I have to face up to. With the Tories and Lib Dems fighting for the seat, and Labour lying in a very distant third, the Labour-supporting, lets-make-sure-the-Tories-don't-get-in, tactical voter would logically vote for the Lib Dems to ensure the seat is saved from the Conservatives, with the conclusion that a Labour vote is a wasted vote. If I vote for Labour, I give a vote to the Tories, I hear the tactical voter say in my ear. Hmmm. It is very difficult for me to get away from this logic, but it bloody well niggles on me that I would be voting for a party I don't believe in.
What do people think? Is tactical voting evil? Or a pragmatic use of the vote?
Hallam is a seat the Tories will have their eyes on, and they seem to be running a successful campaign. I honestly think they'll mobilise voters successfully, and their MPs seemed to be talking in a very upbeat manner (I can bet th focus groups are telling them something good). They could seriously cut the Labour majority severely. Maybe even force a hung parliament? Although that would require both the TOries and the Lib Dems to take seats off Labour and not just scrap over ones like Hallam where they're fighting against each other.
posted by Pete @ 8:11 pm
4 comments
4 Comments:
A certain close relative of mine voted Tory in 1992, cos he felt that another term of government would more emphatically finish them off... so yeah, blame my parent on the paternal side for the mid-90s. Also, something I quite like about NL is that pragmatism has eclipsed idealism... just think it's a more accurate view of how politics works. On the other hand I think that a third-party that isn't single-issue and is able to be reasonably idealistic without having to be hindered by the thought of actually having to enact their policies makes a good kinda pressure group. So I always find myself slightly tempted to vote Lib-Dem (plus it's in my heritage, when my parents aren't voting for parties they don't like).
Peter!
Think about it.
Don't vote Tory!
Like I say, it all depends on which seat your voting in.
A Labour vote here is just a vote for the Tories. So I guess I'll be voting Lib Dem.
I agree that a pragmatic government is more favourable than a left-ideological party (for one, it's more appealing to the general public, it makes you trust them more; though given that report that came out today on trust levels for politicians being at some record low, it doesn't really seem to be working), but they can take the piss a bit with that whole need-to-modernise shit, like banning protests in Parliament Square. Also, it means they can get away with not doing anything radical (see my post on the education white paper) in the name of pragmatism. The Tomlinson Report seemed to be radical and pragmatic, and hopeful, but they really screwed the pooch on that one.
Golly, isn't it going to be boring if we all vote labour ?!
I might vote tory and pretend that I like Howard just to make the election party more interesting. :@)
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