GB Elections - Thoughts.

 

Now it’s time to put in focus the recent general elections in GB - I’m afraid I can no longer use the term UK, for united we’re not!

Just 52% of the adults cast their ballots; the lowest turnout since the vote was extended to adults over 21 in 1928, Statistics from The Institute of Public Policy think tank found that higher turnout rates were seen in constituencies where there were more older people and wealthy homeowners. The IPPR’s simple deduction from these data is that

 “The ‘haves’ speak much louder than the ‘have-nots’ in British democracy.”

                                                           

And there’s the key, the term democracy, we need to look closely at to see what’s happening. If the majority of those who can vote don’t, the results are skewed and don’t represent the citizens’ opinion of that state. Moreover, those who do not vote can still have an effect on popular opinion. The social media provide global podia for the voices of those who would not otherwise be heard. Posts are awash with emotive language, conspiracy theories, unsubstantiated information, stands adopted that are polarizing and often abusive.                                                

 Essentially they constitute the ‘clickbait’ that these sites need to survive, attracting readers as a passive ad-audience. Many people will not deign to stoop to such a low intellectual level; some are afraid to respond for fear of reprisals. Certainly such material producers are well capable of influencing opinion: either some readers will adopt these neat polarized opinion packages or become so disillusioned as to opt out of the whole political arena – declining to vote.                                                  

Let’s look at what happened in Scotland. The number who cast their ballots now was down by 500,000 in comparison to that in the last election. That would seem to indicate general disenchantment with the lack of progress being made towards independence – a fire that apparently still burns strong.

                                            

 And many votes cast were not in support of any party but rather targeted on getting Tories out. The power of Independence support is splintered: SNP, The Yes Movement, Alba and other Indy groups. It is not enough to sing ‘Flower of Scotland’ ardently but to actually get things going legally, politically, idealistically, socially. For the Independence movement to be successful, it needs to forge unity, policy, commitment and trust.

 And we need to work on the whole concept of Democracy as well. Voting is simply not enough.                                      

Politicians should desist from vote-wooing tactics, while the electorate must appreciate that along with rights, they also have duties and responsibilities. We need to ensure candidacy suitability, electoral education and for those who are elected to be accountable, responsible and committed.  Filter and checks need to be built into the systems for the electing and the elected, alike. Without them Plato’s words will be very relevant:

‘In a system where everyone has a right to rule, all sorts of selfish people who care nothing for the people but are only motivated by their own personal desires are able to attain power.’