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Poll: Potential General Election: who are you voting for?

Potential October GE: Who will you vote for?

  • Conservative

    Votes: 84 19.1%
  • Labour

    Votes: 129 29.4%
  • SNP

    Votes: 29 6.6%
  • Plaid Cymru

    Votes: 4 0.9%
  • Lib Dems

    Votes: 130 29.6%
  • TIG

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • DUP

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Sinn Fein

    Votes: 2 0.5%
  • UUP

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • SDLP

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Green Party (or any local Green affiliate)

    Votes: 14 3.2%
  • Other independent or minor party (please state!)

    Votes: 3 0.7%
  • Spoiled ballot

    Votes: 7 1.6%
  • Not voting

    Votes: 13 3.0%
  • Brexit Party

    Votes: 24 5.5%

  • Total voters
    439
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alex397

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I could never vote for the Tories. They are far too ruthless for me and I don't like their morals one bit. And they have split the nation thanks to Cameron's referendum, and have caused caous because of it.

Lib Dems for me. Their coalition with the Tories was a mistake, but that was quite a while ago now. They speak to me more than any other party. I would also consider the Greens, but I think they will always be a minority party. Labour possibly, but that party looks like a mess at the moment.
 
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bramling

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A Remain Aliance (I hope) would offer a second referendum, giving an opportunity to stop Brexit, my primary motivation.

Following on from this, we can assume two situations in the forthcoming (now imminent?) election:

1) Brexit Party and Conservatives enter some kind of non-aggression pact to create a no-deal bloc.
2) Brexit Party and Conservatives compete against each other as the Brexit Party deems the conservatives as ‘not pure’.

In both these situations a Remain Alliance would be successful. In scenario 1: Two blocs compete against each other almost guaranteeing a small majority when assuming the electorate is still split 48-52 as of 2016 (Not likely to be the case anymore). In scenario 2: A fully formed bloc will gain a larger majority against the ‘no deal parties’ allowing a second referendum.

Of course there’s is no guarantee what would happen in a second referendum, but if any of us could read the future we would be much wealthier than we all our currently!

This whole concept I find troubling. So it looks like we’re now going to be getting a general election. I simply do not want to vote along Brexit lines in a general election, which was part of the reason the matter went to referendum. Brexit is by no means the only issue, even if it may feel like it, and I really worry that the country could get the “wrong” result (as in not the one it really wants) as a result of the vote being upset by Brexit voting.

Furthermore, it’s difficult to detect much enthusiasm for *any* party at the moment. How can we have a healthy election on these terms?...
 

Grimsby town

Member
Joined
4 Apr 2011
Messages
386
I'm quite split as someone who doesn't really stick to a particular party but leans to the left.

Like many, I don't like Corbyn that much but I am drawn to his policies particularly after the unbelievable tory cuts to corporation tax which was already lower than all similar nations meaning that the decrease was unlikely to attract businesses. I also worry that we are neglecting other ways which can support and attract business. For example our infrastructure is relatively poor and we suffer from significant mental health issues and the associated reduction in productivity this causes.

One way in which I really feel Corbyns policies could help is through knock on effects (external benefits). The tories have consistently shown no understanding of the knock effects of their policies. Take benefit cuts for example which reduce income available for food causing malnutrition and making people more susceptible to illness which then spreads throughout the population. This coupled with reduced sports funding and not tackling air pollution in cities among many other things all reduce the health of the general population. Then people wonder why the NHS is crisis and why my GP in Manchester has a 4 week waiting time.

So while Corbyn's flaws in foreign policy aren't great, this country desperately needs greater levels of taxation and spending.
 

Busaholic

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Messages
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I remember when the Conservative Party wasn't largely composed of rabid right wingers, the party of Ted Heath and Harold Macmillan. In fact, I vaguely recollect Macmillan, when P.M. but also MP for neIghbouring Bromley, standing on a soapbox in Eltham High Street during, presumably, an election period. I'm afraid, much as I loathe the modern day Tories, I can't celebrate their self-destruction without the thought that it unleashes the reactionary and intensely anti-liberal forces of the Right, emboldened by the success of Trump and various parties in Europe into the mainstream, and that can only bring grief to all corners of the UK.
 

dcsprior

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28 Aug 2012
Messages
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Location
Edinburgh (Fri-Mon) & London (Tue-Thu)
I'd vote SNP, I find myself in broad agreement with most of their policies, though in the last Scottish election I voted Green in the regional vote as a way of pushing the SNP to being a bit bolder on taxation.

I live in a seat that has been Labour for all but two years since it was formed in 1955, but where their majority over the SNP is now less than 900, so there's a chance a vote here could actually count for something.

If I lived in England I would vote anyone other than Tory or Brexit Party who'd stop either of those getting in. In a few cases (and with a bad taste in my mouth) I'd vote for a moderate Tory to stop a Brexit Party candidate. If none of Lab/Lib/Green had a chance, or if more than one did, then I think it'd be down to a choice between those three parties' candidates as individuals.
 

TheEdge

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Norwich
Lid Den unless a tactical vote in my constituency will be more useful in toppling the utter poo-show currently running this country into the ground.
 

Howardh

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Lid Den unless a tactical vote in my constituency will be more useful in toppling the utter poo-show currently running this country into the ground.
The great thing is the Tories are destroying themselves from within, no election necessary!
 

Peter Kelford

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29 Nov 2017
Messages
903
Looking at the poll, this forum has a majority for Remain, of which I am a part - an accurate reflection of the railway community? Is this one of the few things most of us can agree on?
 

433N

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P.S. If I was able to, I would probably vote SNP...

I will probably be voting tactically for the SNP ...

... but listening to all of the parliamentary guff, it is blindingly obvious that the country needs another referendum, not a GE. A GE will give no mandate on Brexit whatsoever.

If the government wants a mandate on No Deal, it should have a No Deal (or wider) referendum.
 

bramling

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Hertfordshire / Teesdale
Looking at the poll, this forum has a majority for Remain, of which I am a part - an accurate reflection of the railway community? Is this one of the few things most of us can agree on?

I don’t think this is a reflection of railway staff at all. At a crew depot known to me a straw poll was done shortly before the referendum. I forget the exact figure but it was very heavily in favour of leave - somewhere around 90% if I remember rightly. I’m pretty certain that the same exercise today would produce a similar result.
 

DarloRich

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Fenny Stratford
I don’t think this is a reflection of railway staff at all. At a crew depot known to me a straw poll was done shortly before the referendum. I forget the exact figure but it was very heavily in favour of leave - somewhere around 90% if I remember rightly. I’m pretty certain that the same exercise today would produce a similar result.

and i bet if you did that same poll in my office it would be a different result. I don't think you can draw any conclusions other than we have a very divided country
 

DarloRich

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Has anyone got the time to read the above? Impressive typing but please keep it concise as this is a train forum.

and yet you havent been back with any comment. I wonder why?

I found the time to read it, and found it to be a well-reasoned explanation (which is not to say that I agree with all of it).

I find myself wondering how likely it is that any party will be hold a majority after a forthcoming election.

My big issue is that the whole agenda is based on a massive assumption that i don't think will play out meaning that the burden of paying for all of this bounty will fall further down the chain on the people who aren't really rich and are just trying to provide a decent standard of life for their families. How is high tax for them going to play against a barrage of lazy layabout scrounger stories?

Other northern European countries seem to do alright despite having unashamedly high tax regimes, for example Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands. Even Norway, although they would do alright regardless because of their huge oil revenue. Despite such a bounty, Norway still prefer to have high tax rates.

They also have a different culture and i suspect lack the top level landed, old money, aristocracy that we have. Is there a Norwegian version of the Duke of Westminster?

I did and i'm in complete agreement, this is the General Discussion area after all. It's a strange concept that you don't want people to expand an opinion on a discussion forum because it isn't about trains.

He will be a disaster because everything he ever proposes is completely unrealistic and will inevitably drag us further down.

thanks

Sorry, that was at bit too simplified, can you expand on that please....

I could try emojis
 

mmh

Established Member
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3,744
The great thing is the Tories are destroying themselves from within, no election necessary!

On the contrary, the Tories are strengthening themselves. No need for an election cos the opposition is too scared to have one. It's absolutely pitiful.
 

krus_aragon

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My big issue is that the whole agenda is based on a massive assumption that i don't think will play out meaning that the burden of paying for all of this bounty will fall further down the chain on the people who aren't really rich and are just trying to provide a decent standard of life for their families. How is high tax for them going to play against a barrage of lazy layabout scrounger stories?
Your concerns appear well-founded.

Conservatives have also been eager to announce new spending initiatives in the past few weeks. I haven't taken the time to check whether they're correctly costed (or what the total to) yet; I've been distracted by, er "other political events"... :)

I wonder what will actually end up printer in the manifestos (once an election date is set)?
 

DarloRich

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On the contrary, the Tories are strengthening themselves. No need for an election cos the opposition is too scared to have one. It's absolutely pitiful.

yesterday Johnson ( and Mogg) made Corbyn look statesman like. They cant afford many days like that!
 

DarloRich

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Conservatives have also been eager to announce new spending initiatives in the past few weeks. I haven't taken the time to check whether they're correctly costed (or what the total to) yet; I've been distracted by, er "other political events"...

I haven't looked as i wont ever vote for them. I suspect they felt they could announce what they liked knowing an election would come before the cheque had to be signed.
 

krus_aragon

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I haven't looked as i wont ever vote for them. I suspect they felt they could announce what they liked knowing an election would come before the cheque had to be signed.
I probably wouldn't spend time reading a manifesto from a party I couldn't stomach voting for, either.
 

Howardh

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On the contrary, the Tories are strengthening themselves. No need for an election cos the opposition is too scared to have one. It's absolutely pitiful.
Oh, I SEE. The way to strengthen a party is to kick out it's MP's, r-i-g-h-t. So if the Libdems chucked out ten of their own, they would be strengthened? Why didn't we think of that before??

I will agree with one thing, the extreme-right are strengthened by losing 20-odd moderates if that's what you mean. Pity they won't be having any power after the election (in the same way they haven't any power now).

Maybe everyone should have a nice lie-down.
 

DynamicSpirit

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12 Apr 2012
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Looking at the poll, this forum has a majority for Remain, of which I am a part - an accurate reflection of the railway community? Is this one of the few things most of us can agree on?

I don’t think this is a reflection of railway staff at all. At a crew depot known to me a straw poll was done shortly before the referendum. I forget the exact figure but it was very heavily in favour of leave - somewhere around 90% if I remember rightly. I’m pretty certain that the same exercise today would produce a similar result.

I don't think it's a reflection of railway staff. My best guess is that it may be to do with that this forum seems to me to attract people are more academic/intellectually minded than average for the population. And surveys that break down Remain/Leave support have consistently shown that higher education levels are strongly correlated with Remain support. For example, back in 2016, YouGov found that, of people who voted, 68% of people with a University degree had voted remain, but 70% of people with no higher than GCSE qualifications had voted leave, (link).
 

DynamicSpirit

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Oh, I SEE. The way to strengthen a party is to kick out it's MP's, r-i-g-h-t. So if the Libdems chucked out ten of their own, they would be strengthened? Why didn't we think of that before??

I will agree with one thing, the extreme-right are strengthened by losing 20-odd moderates if that's what you mean. Pity they won't be having any power after the election (in the same way they haven't any power now).

Maybe everyone should have a nice lie-down.

Yes, as an aside from that, I do wonder whether Labour and the LibDems ought to think very seriously about whether they want an election right now. Boris's hardline on Europe is very likely to neuter the electoral threat to the Tories from the Brexit party (that may well have been his main intention) - and if that succeeds while the Remain/opposition vote remains divided between Labour and the LibDems, the Tories could easily win a majority in any general election. Add to that that an election will allow the Tories to turf out most of their moderate/pro-remain MPs (either by de-selection or by the threat of de-selection causing them to stand down), and it's not hard to see that an election might well massively strengthen the hand of the both Boris Johnson and people like Rees-Mogg (and potentially lead not just to a hard Brexit, but to a much more right wing Government than we have seen so far).

On the other hand, without an election, Boris has no majority in Parliament, and there has to be the possibility of further defections to the LibDems amongst his own MPs.

For all Boris's talk of not wanting an election... I wouldn't be too surprised if he was actually very much wanting to have a general election - while at the same time intending to blame his opponents for it if an election happens.
 

Howardh

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The Leader of the House of Commons would probably agree with you. :)
At least he can't be called "one of the privileged metropolitan elite" can he??

I think he fainted as he could see all the £m's he was going to earn from Brexit was slowly drifting away....
 

Howardh

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Yes, as an aside from that, I do wonder whether Labour and the LibDems ought to think very seriously about whether they want an election right now. Boris's hardline on Europe is very likely to neuter the electoral threat to the Tories from the Brexit party (that may well have been his main intention) - and if that succeeds while the Remain/opposition vote remains divided between Labour and the LibDems, the Tories could easily win a majority in any general election. Add to that that an election will allow the Tories to turf out most of their moderate/pro-remain MPs (either by de-selection or by the threat of de-selection causing them to stand down), and it's not hard to see that an election might well massively strengthen the hand of the both Boris Johnson and people like Rees-Mogg.

On the other hand, without an election, Boris has no majority in Parliament, and there has to be the possibility of further defections to the LibDems amongst his own MPs.

For all Boris's talk of not wanting an election... I wouldn't be too surprised if he was actually desperately wanting to have a general election - while at the same time intending to blame his opponents for it if an election happens.
The opposition must play Boris at his own game. They can vote down an election until it suits THEM, forcing Boris to go back for an extension with his new dog's tail firmly between his legs, and also force through a no-no-deal bill so hi hands are tied (behind his back).

The opposition are now the government and can choose when (or even if) they want an election. Why would they?? Let the Tories (those that are left) swim in their own sewerage.
 

St Rollox

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2 Jun 2013
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I don't think it's a reflection of railway staff. My best guess is that it may be to do with that this forum seems to me to attract people are more academic/intellectually minded than average for the population. And surveys that break down Remain/Leave support have consistently shown that higher education levels are strongly correlated with Remain support. For example, back in 2016, YouGov found that, of people who voted, 68% of people with a University degree had voted remain, but 70% of people with no higher than GCSE qualifications had voted leave, (link).

A good guess would also be most members on here support public transport and would like to see more money invested in the railways.
That's more likely to happen with a non Tory government.
 
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