Did you vote in the Local Elections?

[legalalien]

That is of course your choice. We can all express our views on here but the beauty of democracy is that there?s no ?wrong? vote.

Having fun watching news presenters diligently avoiding saying anything about politics/ the election this morning. A lot about Ukraine, interest rates, Depp /Heard and Elon Musk.

[legalalien]

Here?s where to find your polling station

https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/i-am-a/voter/voting-person

It?s not necessarily the closest one to you and it may have changed since last time.

[KidKruger]

Thanks legal.

And you can turn up with a postal vote paper, right ?

(Asking for a friend..)

[DuncanW]

A picture taken at 9:27 this morning on Lordship Lane.

I had to take a detour this morning on my way to the polling station, so was surprised the roads were so quiet after everything I have read on this forum about traffic chaos and congestion caused by the introduction new LTNs.

[Spartacus]

KidKruger Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Thanks legal.

> And you can turn up with a postal vote paper,

> right ?

> (Asking for a friend..)

If you have a postal vote, you can vote on it, seal it and deliver it to the polling station, but you can't do a vote there.

[KidKruger]

Thanks Sparts.

[trinidad]

Polling stations close at 10pm

[trinidad]

I would like to see much more charging points for electric vehicles around the borough, and better information on recycling.

[diable rouge]

No election day is complete without...

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/in-pictures-57007806 https://twitter.com/hashtag/dogsatpollingstations

[Bic Basher]

DuncanW Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> A picture taken at 9:27 this morning on Lordship

> Lane.

>

> I had to take a detour this morning on my way to

> the polling station, so was surprised the roads

> were so quiet after everything I have read on this

> forum about traffic chaos and congestion caused by

> the introduction new LTNs.

Try again at 3.30.

Labour are doing the rounds on my part of LL this afternoon.

[Rockets]

Labour were asking for polling card numbers outside the DV polling station so they know who to target later in the day for a door knock.

They're obviously worried in some wards and are going to mobilise pressgang squads later today.

[NewWave]

bels123 Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I can't divorce local from national politics - too

> much personal pain from finding out what Boris and

> others in government were doing whilst at the same

> time I was questioning whether I could visit / hug

> my terminally ill father.

>

> A strong message needs to be sent to the

> Conservatives.

Exactly this...My vote is less about local politics and more a vote against Boris and his cronies and their complete disregard for everyone but themselves.

[DuncanW]

Bic Basher Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> DuncanW Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > A picture taken at 9:27 this morning on

> Lordship

> > Lane.

> >

> > I had to take a detour this morning on my way

> to

> > the polling station, so was surprised the roads

> > were so quiet after everything I have read on

> this

> > forum about traffic chaos and congestion caused

> by

> > the introduction new LTNs.

>

>

> Try again at 3.30.

>

> Labour are doing the rounds on my part of LL this

> afternoon.

Just got back from the school run... walked across the top of LL ie over the roundabout - it honestly wasn't that busy.

[legalalien]

But in an existing Labour stronghold what does that achieve - does it actually send that message?

I remain of the view that the local elections are the ONLY way to send a message to those in charge of local government about what you think. There are other opportunities (opinion polls, general elections) to speak to central government.

By all means give up your voice on local government if you want to - it is of course your right - but that does have consequences in terms of local government accountability. (i.e. there isn't any).

NewWave Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> bels123 Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > I can't divorce local from national politics -

> too

> > much personal pain from finding out what Boris

> and

> > others in government were doing whilst at the

> same

> > time I was questioning whether I could visit /

> hug

> > my terminally ill father.

> >

> > A strong message needs to be sent to the

> > Conservatives.

>

> Exactly this...My vote is less about local

> politics and more a vote against Boris and his

> cronies and their complete disregard for everyone

> but themselves.

[pikeyed]

Just went to vote and was really quiet. Apparently not a good turn out so far. Hopefully people will go down later.

[Rockets]

Legal I do wonder whether this is why we find ourselves in this mess at the local level and why councils roundly ignore their constituents. People have become so apathetic to local issues that they are happy to throw their vote away to try and influence the national picture. So many people I have spoke. To seem to have been seduced by the narrative that local elections are about national issues (driven in the main by Labour).

Have we got to the point then that local elections and local councillors are a bit pointless?

[diable rouge]

Going by postal voting, early indications are that it will be a low turnout...

[jazzer]

Exactly, this election is about the election of Councillors to serve the needs of the local community. If they have not done as you wanted, now is the opportunity to dispense with their services and replace with a new incumbent who will hopefully deliver what they have said they will do in their Councillor bumph.

It is also the opportunity to make the council less of a one party state and allow the democratic process to happen with those with the majority being fairly scrutinised on the actions and decisions they have taken on behalf of the community and what should be in the best interests of that community, be it left , right, blue, green, red, yellow or other colour.

[Rockets]

It does dishearten me when I see lots of Labour leaflets extolling the virtues of voting for them "as a vote against national Tory disgrace x, y and z". By doing this Labour are degrading the office of local councillor and ultimately diluting the need for local elections. Local elections are not about national issues they are about local issues. I very much suspect this is why turnouts are always much lower for local elections.

[diable rouge]

Rockets Wrote:

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> So many people I have spoke. To seem to have been seduced by the narrative that local elections are about national issues (driven in the main by Labour)

No one is being seduced. Lots of people are hacked-off with this current Gov, we need to prioritise, there's no point having nicey-nicey local Gov if the country is going to pot. It's naive in the extreme to think that if the Tories do well in the local elections, Johnson and his cabal won't grandstand about it and say it's a vindication of their policies. Get rid of this Gov, then sort out local issues...

[heartblock]

Grassroots is where it's at, that is where policy should form from and then be the push for political parties to listen. This is my current issue with the Labour Party - interfering with local councils, parachuting in candidates for parliament that are acceptable to the LP central committee and ignoring the majority of LP members. Unfortunately although Johnson is a lying, self-promoting, crass and in many ways incompetent PM, I'm not sure anything will really change under Keir's Labour in power.... name one policy.

This is a local election and vote for those who will listen locally. scrutiny doesn't exist at present.

If you are against building on green spaces, giving only the privileged gated roads, infilling and the demolishing of housing stock, so that Southwark can bring in private investors for new builds with very little social housing.... use your vote wisely.

[Spartacus]

I am thinking that if Labour are re-elected locally then we might as well all shut up on the issues of CPZs, LTNs and other things we moan about Southwark for because we will be giving the green light to proceed with their plans

Regardless of the government in power, this is about local issues being driven by our local council and whilst the national parties may crow about it, a general election is the time to make a political statement about how the country is run.

Please don't confuse the two things otherwise we will get what we don't want by sheer stupidity

[jazzer]

yeah, but we all know that the Conservative's are going to take a kicking at the local elections because of what the Govt has been doing/behaving like at national level. But still should not forget that Labour may also take a bit of a rollicking because of the Durham Beergate saga.

Nothing is sure till the votes are counted, scrutinised and finalised. Then we'll see how the local population have voted and if the Conservatives took a kicking or if voters have become disenchanted wit the way the councillors have dismissed the majority's wishes of acting on their behalf. Give it about another 7 hours and you may have some results to shout about and discuss.

[Bic Basher]

I don't need beergate or partygate to tell me which way I voted today. It came down to local issues, but I respect there will be protest votes from those not happy with Southwark Labour or with the Tories at a national level, even though they're voting for local Cllrs.

[Rockets]

diable rouge Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Rockets Wrote:

> --------------------------------------------------

> -----

> > So many people I have spoke. To seem to have

> been seduced by the narrative that local elections

> are about national issues (driven in the main by

> Labour)

>

> No one is being seduced. Lots of people are

> hacked-off with this current Gov, we need to

> prioritise, there's no point having nicey-nicey

> local Gov if the country is going to pot. It's

> naive in the extreme to think that if the Tories

> do well in the local elections, Johnson and his

> cabal won't grandstand about it and say it's a

> vindication of their policies. Get rid of this

> Gov, then sort out local issues...

But by your own measure should you not be voting against Labour to send them a message? Since the last local election they have presided over the most humiliating election defeat of a generation as they blindly followed an ideological path that was utterly unelectable and managed to lose an infinitely winnable election - it was Labour's misstep in electing Corbyn and allowing the hard-left to drive the party that delivered more awful Tory rule. A hard-left that has its roots in councils like Southwark.

So, should you not be helping fix the problem with the opposition first?