Month: April 2015

Parties’ key messages Wednesday 29th April

Tories – Wishful thinking:

Labour – Don;t know what Labour were thinking giving Lucy Powell a leading roll in the campaign. She’s not up to it:

Lib Dems – Funny how all their ‘red lines’ are on policies no one really disagrees with:

UKIP – This is what pisses me off most about UKIP. Instead of making a reasonable argument, they say stuff like this:

Greens – Get these guys signed up for Eurovision:

SNP – Another bad day for Labour in Scotland (and potentially for my wallet):

Plaid Cymru – This is a bit rubbish. Not sure Vine is the best medium for this:

Parties’ key messages Tuesday 28th April

Tories – Not his best, but sticking to the campaign theme:

Labour – It’s that day again. Well done:

Lib Dems – Not wanting to be left out of the fun…:

UKIP – This is happening:

Greens – It’s just all so positive and nice:

SNP – Sack the social media wonk:

Parties’ key messages Monday 27th April

Tories – What invisible food stuff is David Cameron consuming here? I’m going with half a watermelon:

Labour – Housing Monday:

Lib Dems – No one cares:

UKIP – I love UKIP’s bullshit polls and comedy charts:

Greens – Not sure this is language that will speak to many:

SNP – These numbers are incredible:

Plaid Cymru – Probably a good thing IMV:

Parties’ key messages Sunday 26th April

Tories – Ha ha ha:

Labour – This is nothing less than communism to the right:

Lib Dems – Another unwelcome reminder that this chap got off scot free:

UKIP – I’ve been using this ironically, but for UKIP, it’s the truth:

Greens – One (or at a push 2) MPs won’t make for a ‘powerful opposition’ sadly:

SNP – I find this hard to believe:

Plaid Cymru – Goes without saying does’t it?:

Parties’ key messages Friday 24th April

Tories – I observe a definite change in the strategy:

Labour – Ed Balls ladies and gentlemen:

Lib Dems – Only took him five years to come up with this:

UKIP – Attacking from the right:

Greens – The most positive campaign?:

SNP – A good indication of how quickly things can change:

Plaid Cymru – I think most people still won’t have heard of her though:

https://twitter.com/PoliticsPostsUK/status/591645075387580416

Parties’ key messages Thursday 23rd April

Tories – A bit more positive today. They managed to avoid mentioning the SNP here:

Labour – Haven’t had my conversation yet. It would be short:

Lib Dems – This ends like a public information film on the green cross code. Half expected Dave Prowse to pop up:

UKIP – UKIP’s holy day:

Greens – Interesting:

SNP – Doesn’t really make sense:

Plaid Cymru – A healthy dose of jargon:

Parties’ key messages Tuesday 21st April

Tories – John Major took some time out from eating peas with Norma today to campaign for his party:

Labour – NHS

Lib Dems – Pretty sure the answer will be a resounding SNP!:

UKIP – Sticking up for the little guy:

Greens – Positive campaigning:

SNP – This was a good read:

Plaid Cymru – Best I could find:

Respect – This bus and it’s PA system will be the bane of all Bradfordian’s lives for the next two and a half weeks:

Parties’ key messages Monday 20th April

Tories – Said some negatives things about Labour and the SNP for the 20th day in a row.

Labour  – Another NHS day:

Lib Dems – Presumably they are the cowardly lion in this triumvirate:

UKIP  – Check off “Westminster establishment” on you UKIP bingo card:

Greens – Diary date:

SNP  – Not even trying any more:

Plaid Cymru – Parties working together before the election? What’s going on?:

Some voter registration and voting FAQs

Here’s some answers to questions people might have about voting in the GE.

When is the deadline to register?

It’s tomorrow (20th April) so get your skates on! After midnight on Monday, it’s too late.

How can I register?

You’ve left it late, so have two realistic options:

1) Online. Go to www.gov.uk/registertovote. Takes about 5 mins.

2) Call you local council and ask to register to vote. Have you NI number handy. You can find their number by entering your postcode via this link.

I’m on holiday/working away on election day. What can I do?

Again two options:

1) Apply for a postal vote. The deadline is Tuesday 21st. You can get a form from here. It’s getting close to the deadline now, but your local electoral services dept will likely accept scanned copies if you haven’t left enough time to post it.

2) Missed the postal vote deadline? You can still apply for a proxy vote until 28th April. This is where you nominate someone else to vote on your behalf. You can find a proxy vote form here.

I’ve just been called away for work reasons after the proxy vote deadline has passed. What can I do?

You may be able to apply for an “emergency proxy” up until 5pm on polling day. Get a form from here.

I haven’t received my poll card. Does this mean I can’t vote?

Not necessarily. Sometimes whoever is delivering them (usually Royal Mail) cocks up. Check if you’re registered with your local council. You don’t need your poll card to vote. If you are registered, just give your name and address at the polling station to receive you ballot papers.

If you have recently moved and forgot to register, you might still be registered at your old address and could still vote. Again, check with your local council.

When I go to vote there’s usually someone standing outside asking for the number on my polling card. Do I have to give it to them?

If they are wearing a rosette, they’re probably from a political party and are trying to get an idea of who has voted. If you don’t want to tell them your number, tell them (politely) to piss off. You are under no obligation to do so.

I am interested in seeing the results being announced in my local area. Can I go and watch?

Election counts are not open to the public. It is set down in law who can attend, but there are a couple of ways you could get in:

1) Get a job counting the votes. Even at this late stage, your council may be looking for casual staff. Give them a ring to find out. The benefit of this option is that you get paid!

2) Volunteer to act as a counting agent for a political party. For this you definitely will not be paid however!

Any other questions, ask in the comments below and I’ll see if I can find the answer.

Parties’ key messages Sunday 19th April

Tories – Still going big on fear:

Labour – Better to sell it in these terms than in £s IMO:

Lib Dems  – “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for”:

UKIP – A rare appearance on the BBC for the people’s champion:

Greens – If the Greens could clone her 100 times, they might do alright:

SNP – Don’t think Labour have any idea:

Plaid Cymru – Wrexham?: