Oxford East Hustings


The Labour candidate I wanted to vote for just lied straight to my face. So I'm backing his Green opponent. Last night I attended a local hustings for the General Election. The two candidates I was most interested to hear from were Andrew Smith (Labour) and Ann Duncan (Green). The Tory candidate pulled out due to a family emergency, and UKIP didn't bother to show up. The LibDem candidate also was a no show and instead sent a rather inarticulate student in his place. We also were treated …

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Did The Lib Dems Cost Labour The Election?


Logo of the UK's Liberal Democrats.

There have been howls of protest from Labour voters at the prospect of a Lib/Con coalition. The main complaint is that anyone daft enough to vote for Clegg has caused a Tory government. But is it true? Using data from The Guardian, we can see if the Lib Dems cost Labour a majority. In how many seats did a Labour candidate lose to a Conservative? 137. But this doesn't tell the whole story. In Clacton, even if all the 5,577 Lib Dem votes had gone to Labour, the 16,376 is still well short of…

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Why I'm Joining The Lib Dems


Meme that says "I agree with Nick" - with a picture of Nick Clegg.

I'm a natural Labour voter.  As I explained several months ago, I went in to this election thinking I may vote Labour.  It's now become clear that my vote will be going to the Liberal Democrats.  More than that, I will be joining them. I want to explain why - without resorting to attacking the other parties. Voting Reform As I've said, I was raised in a Labour household.  I went to university expecting to vote Labour.  Yet in ever constituency I've ever lived, the Labour Party haven't fiel…

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An Open Letter To The Labour Party


Logo of the Labour party.

Hello! I'm what you would probably describe as a natural Labour voter. I'm middle class, the son of teachers, University educated, member and representative of the NUS, I'm employed by a big British company, I'm a proud union member and a home owner.  I even spoke at the TUC before Gordon Brown took the stage. I probably won't be voting Labour in the next General Election. I say probably, because you still have a chance to win me back. Allow me to explain. I was a few months short of being …

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