Hmmm …
You know, I’ve got to confess, I almost forgot to mention in a post, yesterday, that today is your last chance to register to vote for the upcoming election on May 5th.
And that was even after heading into Brentwood, yesterday, just to double check that I was on the Electoral roll!
D’Oh … !
But that’s not necessarily why I was going to post, though …
You see, I’ve got to confess, I just had an idea in the shower …
Ahem!
Remember, yesterday, that I’d written, briefly, about how I’d come to feel that a ‘None Of The Above’ option could be a good thing: and that more could be done to improve voter turn-out.
Something literally occurred to me in the shower.
I live near a station.
Well …
I live not far from my polling station …
And not far from Brentwood railway station.
I’m sort of lucky, in that regard.
But that got me thinking.
In the past, one of the reasons I skip voting, some years, is because the polling stations are out of my way.
But it occurred to me that would still be the case if I were commuting into London.
Unless the polling station was at the railway station.
That way, commuters could vote on their way home, and not have to worry about going out — to somewhere inconvenient — just to do a chore.
OK, you’d probably need to organise something along the lines of the current Postal Voting registration: in other words, you register, in advance, that you’ll be voting at Commuter Polling Station A, rather than Regular Polling Station B.
And, granted, the people that run polling stations will have an extra amount of stations to run.
But …
Well …
MPs of all political stripes have been saying that one or another form of vote is ‘Fairer’ than others.
But also have a chance — during parliamentary or council votes — to abstain.
Not something, thus far, politicians seem willing to grant to you and me.
Is that fair … ?
5 comments:
Hmmm … I’ve just had a re-read of the Wikipedia entry on the None of the Above option, and noticed that the National Union of Students has what it calls a Reopen Nominations option.
I think I like it … !
Actually yes that sounds like a good idea.
So, you have asked for my comments and here they are!
With the "none of the above", you do indeed raise an interesting point. Now, I'm not saying I either agree or don't agree but I certainly think it is a point for debate.
But the first point I would like to make is that there is still a long way to go to fix this broken political system and AV is a good first step. So, perhaps put Nick Clegg to one side - the referendum is NOT about him - it's about changing things for the future. My request is simple, look at both arguments and make a decision...don't make it about one person one party or a protest. Just ask yourself if you do or don't think that electing an MP with more than half the vote is a good or bad idea?
I will post up the more practical current arrangements about polling stations separately!
OK then, comments on voting....
Until I begun to get involved about five years ago I had no idea of how it all worked. It's complex, confusing and detailed work and it isn't as easy as picking and choosing where you go to vote!
There are sixteen wards but let's take Brentwood West, as I have the best knowledge of this ward.
It's the biggest ward in Brentwood, so a good example. As of 1st April there were:
5039 voters living in 2877 houses and split into four polling districts.
1359 vote in Victoria Road
640 vote at Holly Trees School
1551 vote at South Weald Parish Hall
1489 vote at Kings Chase
within those numbers, 389 vote by post and about 20 or so by proxy.
...and all through the year the register is updated right up until today...giving you an example of how complex it is and why it needs to be as simplified as possible.
So, tailor-made voting for each voter doesn't look like an option just now. Postal voting was brought in to encourage voting and this is a no-lose situation.
You see, if you register for a postal vote you CAN take it into the polling station on the day too and pop it in the box! As long as it is received by 10pm with all the other votes when the boxes are sealed.
But, now, here is even better news: You CAN hand in your postal vote in at any polling station within the same ward! So, let's say you live in Lorne Road, you work in Romford and so therefore don't actually pass your own polling station (Victoria Road)on the way to work. Well, if you have a postal vote you can stop at South Weald Parish Hall on the way to the A12 and pop it in the box on the day (or you could have put it in the post a good week before for good measure)!
Of course if you have not registered to vote by post, it's down to your own polling station as before. But maybe you'll give it some thought for next year!
Hope that helps everyone!
Incidentally, the voter registration and postal registration dates have passed but you can still have a proxy vote if you are already registered to vote - the Lib Dem team in Brentwood West will arrange this for you if you call 07927 404 827 or email brentwoodwest.libdems@gmail.com by 20th April.
Finally, electoral registration is still evolving. Look at how we were able to complete the census with a registration code unlike ten years ago....I sense e-voting in the not too distant future.
Cllr Karen Chilvers
Voting stations are open 7am-10pm, so it ought to be plenty of time for people to vote.
We could have the whole day off like they do in USA, but I think it might be more disruptive to the economy than it's worth.
Karen gives some good information about postal voting, though.
I often wonder about writing "none of the above", but I worry it would count as a spoiled paper.
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