[Politics] May 2021 local elections and Hartlepool by-election

[jackalbion]

Voted for the chap down the road who I bump into nearly every day when out for a stroll. Great bloke, great ideas. That's what local elections are about. Never spoilt a ballot before, but wrote something like 'waste of time, pointless job' on the PCC paper.

Conversely, father-in-law only went specifically to vote for PCC. But then he's a mason, so they're probably mates, and all looking after each other.....

Weirdest thing about these PCC elections is that the majority of the vote will be dictated by rural Sussex, for issues that need addressing in Central Brighton. Not that the concerns of rural Sussex shouldn’t be listened to, but this bizarre election just adds more bureaucracy to a system failing many people within it. It needs intelligent well funded and well informed police on the streets, not someone desperate to force and ideology of police decision making.

 

[Pavilionaire]

The bottom line is that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens need to unite as one left of centre party. Until that happens the Tories will continue to mug off the electorate for decades to come.

 

[pastafarian]

Women died so I could have a vote, so I never waste it. I have spoilt papers in the past, as they are counted and noted, but always vote.
If you don’t vote, you can’t complain.

worth mentioning men have died as well as women so we can all live in a free country and have the option of voting.

 

[clapham_gull]

I love the well meaning public service orientated tick box individuals who operate the polling stations.

A highly efficient simple computer-less world where millions of pieces of paper are processed nationally in hours.

After being shepherded in a Covid secure environment Porton Down would be proud of, I offered a "I got quite confused there, I was about to roll up my sleeve for a second jab !"

"Yes, there are obvious similarities" he said.

I replied, "I guess the major difference is, I'd leave here with hope..."

Barely a smile...

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

The bottom line is that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens need to unite as one left of centre party. Until that happens the Tories will continue to mug off the electorate for decades to come.

Spot on, I had hoped they would have learnt this from the last election, sadly not.

 

[Garage_Doors]

I'm not bothered about those who voted once, didn't get what they wanted, and now boycott democracy.

And I'm not bothered if they continue to complain.

There is no electoral system that gives eveyone what hey want.

If you don't like it, you could always kill everone that thinks differently from you.

Or put them on ignore

You seem to an unhealthy obsession with this ignore thing, at this rate you will have no friends left.

 

[Kuipers Supporters Club]

Tories romp home in the Hartlepool by-election.

Can Labour even win a General Election ever again? Are they now just the party of students and big cities?

 

[Beach Hut]

Epic fail by Sir Kier at first attempt in a by-election, must try harder.......

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

The bottom line is that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens need to unite as one left of centre party. Until that happens the Tories will continue to mug off the electorate for decades to come.

Labour were in Government for 13 years up to 2010. Brexit though is a game changer and Labour made a generation defining decision to back Remain. They will continue to see their support ebb away until they embrace life outside of the EU. Until then they won’t be trusted. Today they lost Hartlepool. Your lab/lib/green coalition wouldn’t have helped.

 

[nicko31]

The bottom line is that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens need to unite as one left of centre party. Until that happens the Tories will continue to mug off the electorate for decades to come.

With Scotland all but lost we need a progressive alliance.

Labour need to forget the forlock tuggers in the likes Hartlepool

 

[beorhthelm]

The bottom line is that Labour, Lib Dems and Greens need to unite as one left of centre party. Until that happens the Tories will continue to mug off the electorate for decades to come.

as two articles in the Guardian this week expressed, Labour will continue to struggle if they treat the electorate as being "wrong" to vote Conservative. its condescending and creates alienation from Labour.

Labour, Lib Dems and Greens wont unite as they are not of the same political persuasions, "anyone but the Tory" isn't a sustainable policy. also worth noting in Hartlepool, Lib Dems and Greens didnt manage 4 figure counts between them, they were relegated to novelty party status.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

With Scotland all but lost we need a progressive alliance.

Labour need to forget the forlock tuggers in the likes Hartlepool

They already have forgotten the people of Hartlepool. Your description of the electorate sums things up neatly. The Labour candidate for Hartlepool was an ardent remainer like yourself. Whilst your southern, university progressive alliance has obsessed on Boris’ curtains these past few weeks, the voters have passed judgement. Your attitude is part of the problem as it seems common in the modern Labour Party.

 

[Steve Foster]

With Scotland all but lost we need a progressive alliance.

Labour need to forget the forlock tuggers in the likes Hartlepool

Views like this will keep Labour in opposition permanently.

11 years in government & winning Hartlepool with a thumping majority. Labour losing council seats up & down the country. Not healthy for the country to have fractious opposition.

 

[Brovion]

Tories romp home in the Hartlepool by-election.

Can Labour even win a General Election ever again? Are they now just the party of students and big cities?

Ok, I'm looking for excuses but they picked totally the wrong candidate. The people of Hartlepool were asked to vote for someone who called them a bunch of ignorant, racist troglodytes. Fair enough he probably didn't use those exact words (in public), but we all know what middle class Remainers/Rejoiners think of working class Brexit voters.

 

[Brovion]

With Scotland all but lost we need a progressive alliance.

Labour need to forget the forlock tuggers in the likes Hartlepool

Forelock tuggers? The exact opposite. In the Referendum they refused to vote they way they were ordered to by the officer class and they've been the subject of middle class anger ever since. Labour picking another abuser as a candidate has had the predicable response.

 

[Hugo Rune]

Ok, I'm looking for excuses but they picked totally the wrong candidate. The people of Hartlepool were asked to vote for someone who called them a bunch of ignorant, racist troglodytes. Fair enough he probably didn't use those exact words (in public), but we all know what middle class Remainers/Rejoiners think of working class Brexit voters.

This is very valid. The Labour Party somehow assumed these people would be voting on current issues such as the Government’s handling of the pandemic. Sadly, folk who voted the Tory in are the 25% of people who voted Brexit Party last time. I suspect they’ll still be voting for Brexit until their dying days.

 

[Weststander]

Labour need to come up with an achievable vision for the country and some serious, specific policies.

Smirking weasel John Ashworth being wheeled out every day, forever only talking about sleaze, after abandoning CV19 failures with the vaccines success, is simply is not good enough. Dyson enquiring about the tax status of his overseas staff being brought back to help the UK to urgently create a ventilator, was NOT a corruption smoking gun. Perspective.

Starmer needs to look back to see how John Smith, Mandelson, Blair and Brown won over swathes of England in the 90’s.

He needs to look forward creating that vision and big policies.

Allowing bitchy class warriors in his party to control the agenda, is the road to political oblivion. It will only yield the x percent of chattering classes, participants of left wing echo chambers, who were non-Tories already.

Hoping that Starmer wakes up from this malaise, take control, brings in great minds.

 

[Happy Exile]

I'm not a Labour supporter (or a Tory) but this feels like a bit of an existential crisis for Labour, with them losing the council in Sunderland for the first time since 1973 too. As others smarter than me have said, the problem for Labour is deepened because the evidence of the moral, economic and political failures of the Government and individuals in it are plain for everyone to see - lies have been exposed that in any other Government at any other point in history would have led to resignations and sackings for gross misconduct, but a large number of people literally don't care even when that costs lives. Which makes the problem for Labour as much about needing people to care again as it does about them needing to have a compelling message for voters, because if people don't care about the lies and lack of integrity then whatever message you put out will just hit a wall of denial and lies and propaganda you can never overcome. Unless Labour can find a way to out-b*stard the Tories and play them at their own game, somehow without making it a race to the bottom, they are never going to come back: when the PM can literally lie over and over again with impunity to slam your message, and people choose to not care but instead believe the message they are giving out despite easily available evidence he's lying, how do you fight that?

 

[Pavilionaire]

as two articles in the Guardian this week expressed, Labour will continue to struggle if they treat the electorate as being "wrong" to vote Conservative. its condescending and creates alienation from Labour.

Labour, Lib Dems and Greens wont unite as they are not of the same political persuasions, "anyone but the Tory" isn't a sustainable policy. also worth noting in Hartlepool, Lib Dems and Greens didnt manage 4 figure counts between them, they were relegated to novelty party status.

I agree with you. I think the success of the Democrats who have won 5 out of the last 8 presidential elections shows that even a rampant free market country like the USA can vote in a left of centre party in a 2-horse race.

The key is the FIrst Past The Past system. The left - with 3 national parties - will always be fighting with one hand tied behind their backs, and Brexit is a game- changer.

I speak as a Lib Dem voter. I don't think that on policy there is much difference between us and Labour, and as the environmental situation becomes more urgent the time is right for the Greens to form an alliance with a party capable of winning an election and implementing greener policies.

 

[Neville's Breakfast]

This is very valid. The Labour Party somehow assumed these people would be voting on current issues such as the Government’s handling of the pandemic. Sadly, folk who voted the Tory in are the 25% of people who voted Brexit Party last time. I suspect they’ll still be voting for Brexit until their dying days.

No, only until you stop opposing it. It is interesting that you see the Government’s handling of the pandemic as the big current issue. The past few weeks all I have heard about from Labour is ‘Tory sleaze,’ curtains and redecoration. Own goal.