What do you make of 'Reform's' gains in local elections yesterday ?
Protest vote against the established parties ?
Or do you think they're a political force going forward ?
Or do you think they're a political force going forward ?
56-60, M
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I think that the main parties should take it seriously. When you write off Reform, or Trump voters in America, as just a bunch of ignorant nationalists/racists you minimise the threat and you potentially fail to read the room. Elections aren't won by the extremes, they are won in the middle ground. Extremists don't have the numbers to win elections unless in very small seats. What matters is who most influences those who are essentially on the fence or close to it. The extreme left will always vote left and the extreme right will always vote right. The people in the middle can swing and if you ignore the concerns of a large chunk of voters as being the concerns of a small extreme of voters then you can have a huge blind spot.
Whether the votes that you don't want are protest votes or opposition votes, you are being sent a message and you should respond accordingly if you want to remain in power. What those who aren't in power, and certainly those who have never been in power, have a great ability to do is to promise the earth. It should be recognised that such promises don't only influence the uneducated. In fact, when considering opposition voters they should be treated as educated and informed regardless of whether they are or not. You should carefully consider their concerns, however alien to your own belief system, and you should strategise accordingly. That is not to say that you must pander to extreme views, but those in the middle ground won't have extreme views anyway. While they don't have extreme views they might not have your views and you should not assume that they do. Ignoring politically sensitive issues is playing into the hands of the extremists. The biggest mistake that parties can make is to get caught up in snobbery. Trump was a massive Trojan horse's ass. His supporters were branded as racists and bigots, no particular threat. He'll never get into power, said so many on the left. They ignored the legitimate concerns of many non extreme voters as being the concerns of only the extreme voters. If our two main parties, at least as once were, do the same then they'll sleep on Farage and he might just bite them in the ass.
Whether the votes that you don't want are protest votes or opposition votes, you are being sent a message and you should respond accordingly if you want to remain in power. What those who aren't in power, and certainly those who have never been in power, have a great ability to do is to promise the earth. It should be recognised that such promises don't only influence the uneducated. In fact, when considering opposition voters they should be treated as educated and informed regardless of whether they are or not. You should carefully consider their concerns, however alien to your own belief system, and you should strategise accordingly. That is not to say that you must pander to extreme views, but those in the middle ground won't have extreme views anyway. While they don't have extreme views they might not have your views and you should not assume that they do. Ignoring politically sensitive issues is playing into the hands of the extremists. The biggest mistake that parties can make is to get caught up in snobbery. Trump was a massive Trojan horse's ass. His supporters were branded as racists and bigots, no particular threat. He'll never get into power, said so many on the left. They ignored the legitimate concerns of many non extreme voters as being the concerns of only the extreme voters. If our two main parties, at least as once were, do the same then they'll sleep on Farage and he might just bite them in the ass.
SunshineGirl · 36-40, F
@UBotMate I appreciate the point about the snobbery trap. However, one of Farage's tactics is to normalise racist language and behaviour. The urge to adjust to the shifting middle ground has caused the mainstream parties to adopt quite illiberal policies at odds with their core values. It is important that racist behaviour is called out, whoever is displaying it, otherwise we are assisting in Farage's cause.
@SunshineGirl Sure, but to judge the supporters' motivations as being racially biased is a mistake and can again lead to oversight. While racism will absolutely be a factor for some, it will not be a factor for others. A racist group and a non racist group can share a common concern while having entirely separate motivations. When all supporters of certain policies and initiatives are assumed to be ignorant it often serves only to galvanise their support for the party that you don't want in power. To defeat parties like Reform they need to be taken seriously and their voters need to be taken seriously, as do their concerns. An intelligent government should look for ways to assure the moderates without pandering to the extremes. The aim should be to draw the moderates away from the extremes and that includes both the left and the right. The extreme left do nothing to create or promote unity either.
SunshineGirl · 36-40, F
@UBotMate The trouble is that "immigration" when viewed objectively and dispassionately, is not half the issue it is popularly held to be. The UK attracts proportionately fewer immigrants than any other large European country. If we funded our asylum services properly there would not be such a large backlog of applications and we would spend less money on temporary accommodation and welfare. Yet the "small boats"/illegal immigrant rhetoric is mainstream now and inhibits attempts to come up with a practical solution.
@SunshineGirl Granted, but immigration is just one of the issues and whilst being a mainstream issue it is not the only issue. I think that another danger is to get too caught up on the immigration issue and to lose focus on the other concerns of voters who may drift to the right. The most important thing for me is to not pigeon hole large numbers of reasonably moderate voters simply because they are not on the same page. Too much of either side is a bad thing in my opinion. I'm a firm believer in moderate politics, with influences from both sides.