Vote None of the Above

In which Keevil attempts to persuade you to turnout and vote on 2nd May, even if it’s to vote ‘None of the Above’..

In brief:
If you don’t vote, then whatever discourages you from voting gets ignored and that’s partly on you.
If you do vote, but you spoil your ballot, that gets recorded, and it shows those standing that its partly on them.

Voting ‘None of the Above’/NOTA or spoiling your ballot provides voters with the option to demonstrate their dislike for all the candidates in an election. And depending on how you spoil your ballot, a chance to be creative..

NOTA demonstrates that voting for a candidate is only meaningful if you can also actively not vote for them!

Registered voters who didn’t vote in white.

It’s convenient for those elected to argue that non-voters are apathetic, but it avoids the real questions of why. Only if a significant number of protest votes are cast will those in power pay attention.

All votes are counted and announced, that includes ballots where the voter has not voted for a candidate. In the 2015 General Election, it represented less then 1% of the vote.

It’s estimated that two thirds of the electorate will not vote in the local elections.

Elections could be about optimism, about voting to make things better, for action to solve problems.

However, you don’t vote for the party that could lead the council, you don’t vote under a proportional representation system. You get to vote First Past the Post, and you get to vote for the individuals who are standing in your ward. Whether they live there or not.

How to Vote ‘None of the Above’ in the Local Elections #MedwayElects19

A blank vote option is not provided in the UK and some authorities do not recognise them as clear protest votes. The Electoral Commission advise that they be grouped with mistakes and unclear votes.

Protest votes must be clear beyond dispute. Do not put a cross anywhere. It is essential to avoid your ballot being dismissed as ‘uncertain’.

For example, draw a line through all the boxes and or writing NONE across the ballot.

So if you are considering not voting because you don’t see the point, at least turn up and tell them so.

One Reply to “Vote None of the Above”

  1. Perhaps MPs salary should reflect the number of people that voted for them? Set the base salary at £100k for an MP that gets 100% of all the voters in his constituency. In the above example Mr Reckless gets £21k a year, probably what he’s worth. And definitely not a bad wage! This would encourage them to make politics ore appealing to the majority.

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