A ruddy faced gammon with a rosette was lurking by the doors and greeted me with “I hope I can rely on your vote?”
I would consider that to be blatant election campaigning, so illegal.
"It shall be an offence to engage in campaigning activity within a prescribed area around a polling station on the day of a relevant election at any time during the period in which the polling station is open."
The prescribed around a polling station is up to 250 metres from the main entrance.
They are however perfectly entitled to ask you how you voted.
The ballot boxes were stuffed because there were 2.1 million parties on the ballot so each paper was the length of the Bayeux Tapestry. It looks like I was the only person who fancied a change.
I would consider that to be blatant election campaigning, so illegal.
Was thinking the same.
I had no idea who to vote for so scrawled the C word across my paper. Does that count as one to Farage?
The guidelines are that the vote counts if the intention is clear. There is much more leeway than you might think.
I voted on may 4th.
Yes, at 7.20 this morning. I was the third person to do so here in sunny Garnant. The officers said that it was a very slow day.
I voted on may 4th.
Indeed, green some weeks ago here. Out does puzzle me that serval of the parties posted campaign info after the postal vote deadline.
Voted green just to piss off grimep (ninfan in a flowery frock & blouse), snp will get 3 seats out of 6 in Scotland and it’s practically impossible to get 4 using the D’Hondt voting system so despite being a snp supporter a green vote was for the best in this area (Galloway), just hope the ****ing tories/Brexit party don’t get a seat but I imagine the usual Tory voters will be frothing at the mouth over not leaving the eu yet so will hopefully have voted Brexit thus splitting their voting power to ****-all.
I didn't want to be a racist so I made sure I didn't vote for any party with lead candidates with white sounding names, that left me with a choice of the Brexit Party, the Tories or Labour - so I voted for one of them.
I voted on may 4th.
You are also in danger of breaking the law.
Yup, SNP
Tommy Robinson is standing round here.
The ballot paper might as well have been used to wrap half a pound of streaky, it was that porky.
Voted Green.
It's nice to hear so many people voting Green.
Voted, apparently I was the fourth cyclist in the polling station that day. No bleeding heart remoaners to trip over so sucked on my lemon and voted for milkshake man (odious unpleasant toad that he is).
Long drive back from remote working meant I was too late.
Would have voted LibDem despite being long-time 'tribal' labour voter.
My take - tories have shown themselves to be incompetent and do not deserve anyone's vote; labour - corbyn is controlled by momentum, has no credibility, has no clearly articulated policies; ukip - enough said; brexit party - opportunistic single issue and single representative group with nothing to say other than we want out; greens - lovely people, I'm sure, but a set of policies searching for a home; libdems - consistent in opposing brexit and lobbying for a people's vote.
Bit of a shit shower in truth.
Just returned from polling Station duty. About 65% turnout in my station, probably slightly higher than the last EU election. Most electors really struggling to know who to vote for, even those who have voted one way for decades. Many with strong views but no idea how to represent these in a meaningful vote.Bizarre times.
Green here also for the first time ever.
Green for me too
those who have voted one way for decades
Is that why we're in this mess in the first place? Blinkered, "I've always voted for X, so has my family etc."
Bloke atvour suburban polling station reckoned about 150 voters when we were there about 6ish. Is disappoint.
Just got back from the pub, friend of mine is a presiding officer and he reckoned it was a huge turnout for a euro election. He sort of indicated that the brexit party was responsible for bringing in the voters 🙁. I'm normally a conservative voter, but not this time. I've come to the realization that brexit might very well never happen so voted for the candidate that I felt was most committed to doing the actual job of a MEP.
Is that why we’re in this mess in the first place? Blinkered, “I’ve always voted for X, so has my family etc.”
What distinguishes political parties is priorities and core values.
Once you have indentified your own priorities and core values it is logical that you should vote for a political party which most shares your priorities and core values.
And it makes perfect sense to continue to vote for that party indefinitely, as long as your priorities and core values, and those of the political party, remain the same.
Obviously things can change over time. For example, when the LibDems became a pro-austerity party in 2010 and they lost the majority of their voters, but extreme examples like that are rare. Generally speaking people can feel comfortable voting for the same party every election.
Under normal circumstances I don't think being a floating voter is anything to be proud of. It suggests that you're not sure of what you believe in or what different political parties stand for.
Voted mid morning. Put my X against the Lib Dems (toss up between them and the Greens) despite being a card carrying Labour member. Polling station seemed very quiet but it did seem there was a polling station about every quarter of a mile - Bristol.
i voted lib dems (between them and green party)
First time ever to not vote Labour.
Went LibDem in the hope of limiting the damage Farage will do.
With my mighty one vote of power.
Lots of apparent gammon types around when I was there.... Though I really shouldn't generalise like that of course.
In Holland, the populist who were expected to be ahead, only came second or third.
I usually vote Green but I voted Lib Dem to (hopefully) count as a definite remain vote. I was properly torn when it came to actually cast my vote though, me and my OH had a full-on moral dilemma going on outside the polling station before we'd decided what we thought was 'best' in this instance 😆 Not being able to beat Farage to a bloody, quivering pulp, putting an 'X' in a box will have to do...
**** brexit.
Another vote for the greens here.
Yep. I have a feeling I will be returning to the polling station later this year for a General Election.
Green too
Though I do wonder, that while this was a vote for an MEP, what will it be cast as?
Some kind of proxy general election? An opinion poll on Brexit? I imagine it will be cast what ever way the spin doctors and papers want.
When do we start getting the results?
Remainer, work in manufacturing, got kids who I want to grow up in a tolerant society, pro NHS and not a fascist.
LD
And it makes perfect sense to continue to vote for that party indefinitely, as long as your priorities and core values, and those of the political party, remain the same.....
Under normal circumstances I don’t think being a floating voter is anything to be proud of. It suggests that you’re not sure of what you believe in or what different political parties stand for.
We've essentially had a choice of only 2 parties and both claiming to contain a broad church of values. These have manifested recently as distinct splits and sub groups within these parties. How can you then say that party still represents my values, when it has such varying sets of values within it? I'd say the opposite to you. If you're continually voting for the same out of the 2 parties then you're really not sure what you believe in.
It's not about being a floating voter it's about having more choice of parties that have a chance of being in power. Perhaps that would inevitably lead to more coalition governments, but may be that's the answer
3 x Green votes here, I proxy voted for my daughter (she's just bought a property in Northern Portugal), so that worked for her. All the high profile environmental issues in the media in recent months may well make a big difference ..... here's hoping!
"has been distorted by vested political and economic interests into a union dominated by economic interests, which lacks democratic control, and promotes the goals of multinational corporations which are interested in profit not people, and which runs counter to the professed core values of the Union."
"the excessive influence of the Commission and its associated bodies compared to the Council and Parliament is both undemocratic and unaccountable."
"The present structure of EU committees gives too much power to particular interests at the expense of citizens of member countries generally.".
"The Green Party rejects many existing EU policies and likewise opposes inclusion of them in a constitution or constitutional treaty."
"In our Green vision for Europe we seek to replace the unsustainable economics of free trade and unrestricted growth with the ecological alternative of local self reliance and resource conservation"
https://policy.greenparty.org.uk/eu.html
To all the Green voters. Aren't you exaggerating the flaws in the EU just a tinsy bit? You could make most of these points about any country with a decent civil service.
Multinational companies? Really? Small businesses are thriving all over the EU, not in spite of it, but in many cases because of it. (I know a guy with a small business who does nothing but export large colume low value items across the EU, the EU works brilliantly for him and he's a one man band. )
Get a grip, the EU is not that bad.
The polls are all over the place other than Brexit party winning.
Final survation poll has Labour in 2nd place on 23% and Cons in third. Whereas yougov and Ipsissmori have Labour third after Lib-Dems and cons 5th after greens. Others have every flavour in-between
I’d love to be wrong but I can see the brexit party doing very well out of this and giving the gammons more “you lost get over it” vitriol
Obviously a large leave vote will be taken as a stop brexit right now message by the labour big wigs.
Another one who's voted something other than Labour for the first time as I just couldn't vote for a pro-Brexit party
Green as the tactical voting said that was the best pro-remain option in the North West
Oob, we don't have to agree with everything they say, just more of theirs than the next.
As it goes most of that I do agree with and, just because some of it as you rightly point out is true of most member states doesn't make it any less true of the EU.
Re the multinational vs small business you don't have to have one at the expense of the other, the EU is actually making some ground on holding the large multi nationals to account where a lot of nations lack either the will or weight to do so. On the other hand I can't help but look at the wholesale relocation of (eg steel) industry from one end of the EU to the other in pursuit of greater profit as specifically facilitated by policies on free movement of goods.
Your friend moving low value items might be a poster boy for that same policy but equally 50 years ago the equivalent items would have been produced locally, moved locally and supported several small businesses over a wide area. There are arguments for both sides and dismissing either because of a limited number of examples is pretty foolish.
Well we will not hear any results until late Sunday evening.
So rejoice in the fact that you got off your arses and voted.
👍💃
Binners - Nice choice. If labour don't get the message after this then they really are dying. I expect a low % on a low turnout.
I made the same sort of tactical choice
Your friend moving low value items might be a poster boy for that same policy but equally 50 years ago the equivalent items have been produced locally, moved locally and supported several small businesses over a wide area. There are arguments for both sides and dismissing either because of a limited number of examples is pretty foolish.
You can't blame the EU for that, that's just how the global economy works. I'm all for doing thing locally but in the UK we have a load of people, not enough agriculture to feed ourselves and few natural resources. Clearly it would be better if that wasn't the case but it is and our options are to participate in Global trade (and the EU is a big part of that) or literally starve. And that's not the EU's fault, that's just how it is.
On the other hand I can’t help but look at the wholesale relocation of (eg steel) industry from one end of the EU to the other in pursuit of greater profit as specifically facilitated by policies on free movement of goods.
Free movement of capital and labour so the most efficient places get the work is a cornerstone of the EU. You're making out it's a disadvantage it's the main advantage. Protecting business with Tariffs/restrictions on movement has never worked long term. You can't blame the EU for accepting economic reality.
Hoping for a surge of youth voting, might be in vain but you never know. Polls didn't look very hopeful though.
I voted Green as best chance of fending of Leaver parties, but was worried that of all the people i saw going into the Polling Station i was the youngest at 44 by about 20 years!
A tough election- deciding between UKIP and the Brexit party was never going to be easy.
I voted Green as best chance
to show I'm a committed leaver whilst making all my friends think I'm coolof fending of Leaver parties
“has been distorted by vested political and economic interests into a union dominated by economic interests, which lacks democratic control, and promotes the goals of multinational corporations which are interested in profit not people, and which runs counter to the professed core values of the Union.”
“the excessive influence of the Commission and its associated bodies compared to the Council and Parliament is both undemocratic and unaccountable.”
“The present structure of EU committees gives too much power to particular interests at the expense of citizens of member countries generally.”.
“The Green Party rejects many existing EU policies and likewise opposes inclusion of them in a constitution or constitutional treaty.”
“In our Green vision for Europe we seek to replace the unsustainable economics of free trade and unrestricted growth with the ecological alternative of local self reliance and resource conservation”
https://policy.greenparty.org.uk/eu.html
