British Election Thread

jedd_kenobi said:
just been watching the Tooting Counting and Sadiq Khan (the Junior Transport Minister) has held onto his seat. the crowd started chanting "yes we khan" over and over almost like they think they're before Barack Obama.
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I saw that on BBC World before I went swimming. It was awesome, I started chanting too!
90 Labour, 89 Tories, 13 Lib Dem and 23 other. Damn this exciting, it's keeping me away from my assigment though... :(
 
brydiem said:
I saw that on BBC World before I went swimming. It was awesome, I started chanting too!
90 Labour, 89 Tories, 13 Lib Dem and 23 other. Damn this exciting, it's keeping me away from my assigment though... :(
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somehow i get the feeling that if Brown goes (and its a bloody good feeling at that), Khan will be one of those who goes for the leadership bid between Mandelson (he's probably already sharpening his knives and humming the Darth Vader theme), Miliband and the Home Secretary bloke (i forgot his name, its 3:30am! thats my excuse!)

i love watching Paxman interviewing politicians, its like watching someone beat someone else over the head with a baseball bat yelling "SHUT UP! I'M TALKING HERE!"
 
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Dammit, 112 Tories to 103 Labour. Knew this would have to happen eventually... :(

May encourage me to actually do some work though. Damn election being on a few days before a big assignment is due!! :shakefist:

(and yes, the interviews are hilarious. The guy on the boat is on BBC World now. And it's 12:30pm over here, so I have no excuses for laziness/idiocy :lol:)
 
Party Seats Gain Loss Net Votes % +/-%
Conservative 109 26 1 +25 3,650,513 34.0 +3.6
Labour 102 1 24 -23 3,040,320 28.3 -5.9
Liberal Democrat 14 1 3 -2 2,282,415 21.2 +0.8
 
brydiem said:
Dammit, 112 Tories to 103 Labour. Knew this would have to happen eventually... :(

May encourage me to actually do some work though. Damn election being on a few days before a big assignment is due!! :shakefist:

(and yes, the interviews are hilarious. The guy on the boat is on BBC World now. And it's 12:30pm over here, so I have no excuses for laziness/idiocy :lol:)
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should have seen Bruce Forsyth (TV Presenter of Strictly Come Dancing) was on tv and very nearly ended up putting my fist through the tv screen.
you could just do like everyone else over here in England and blame it on Gordon Brown, after all he's the one who chose May the 6th as polling day. You could send him a letter of complaint but he might be changing address soon.
 
on the home front, my home town of Swindon has gone to the Tories. Swindon South where Wooten Bassett is also located (although they really hate being part of Swindon) and where the bodies of UK troops are repatriated has gone to the tories. Anne Snelgrove of the Labour Party has been kicked out, she was also Gordon Brown's Private Secretary.
just waiting for my part of Swindon, Swindon North count to be released. Although it too does look to be going to Conservative and removing Labour entirely from the region.
UPDATE 1: Yup, Swindon North has gone to the Tories. My vote for Lib Dem may have been for a 3rd place party. but at least i still managed to have a say. to quote Jed Bartlet from the west wing.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, they said, that all men are created equal. Strange as it may seem, that was the first time in history that anyone had bothered to write that down. Decisions are made by those who show up.
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UPDATE 2: Luton South Count has been released. TV show presenter Esther Rantzen has lost her bid to take Labour's seat.
The Redditch Count has been released. Former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has lost her seat and Redditch has gone to Conservative. Her husband had put expense claims for porno films last year and she has been completely battered by the tories.
 
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The constituency I grew up in, The Wrekin, has gone to Conservative MP Mark Pritchard again.
 
Caroline Lucas leader of the Green Party has taken the Brighton Pavilion Seat.
BNP Leader Nick Griffin has been beaten in Barking by Margaret Hodge for Labour who held and kept the Labour seat. successfully keeping the BNP away.
 
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"BREAKING NEWS
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg says he sticks to his view that the party with most votes and seats - the Conservatives - should seek to form a government."

:wall: DAMMIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cry:

Not the Tories, not the Tories :(
 
im ashamed, the north east of england voted pretty much exclusively labour... not surprised though most of newcastle is employed by the government for example. something like 70% of the population do public sector work. money pit right there.
 
otispunkmeyer said:
im ashamed, the north east of england voted pretty much exclusively labour... not surprised though most of newcastle is employed by the government for example. something like 70% of the population do public sector work. money pit right there.
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Indeed, it was - for me at least - a constant facepalm as the results came in. I'm ashamed of much of the North West - specifically the Greater Manchester area - for letting Labour back in, especially as it wasn't so long ago that they were trying to get the congestion charge down everybody's throats. Which got rebuked as we know, but still...rrrrr! *makes lots of shouty noises*

Still, in my home constituency (Rossendale & Darwen) the Tories got in which whilst that isn't ideal, it is one in the eye for Labour and their candidate Janet Anderson (of whom was one of those caught red-handed in the expenses scandal, read about the tens of thousands she claimed for here).

Regards,

Yickle!
 
All in all, that was about as bad as it gets. Numbers:

Conservative, 291 seats, 36% share of the vote
Labour 251, 29.3
Lib Dem 52, 22.9.


Good things

Good turnout. Lots of first time voters.

The Greens finally winning a seat via Caroline Lucas in Brighton.

Esther Rantzen and Nick Griffin coming nowhere.

Two repressive ex-Home Secretaries in Jacqui Smith and Charles Clarke are kicked out.

Bad things

The alleged "voter chaos". I know this is harsh, but here is a tip. If you are going to vote, try to do it before 10pm. You have 15 hours. And try to take your polling card. Don't be utterly clueless about everything and then blame everyone else for your own inadequacies and lack of planning.

Hazel Blears still in.

Dr Evan Harris lost his seat. Harris was one of the major, indeed only voices of rationality when it came to scientific issues in Parliament. He spoke from knowledge and experience. This is a bad result for an already struggling scientific community.

Overall though, the fact that Lib Dem vote went up and their seats went down shows how utterly screwed up the system is now. They polled 23% of the vote and hold 8% of the seats. The Tories polled 36% and hold 45%, Labour 29% and 38% respectively. That is broken, but the Lib Dems performed so badly that even negotiations as kingmakers are going to be difficult. First time voters will be completely disillusioned.

I think this was a "local" election - for once people voted on their MP, not their party. It has to be the only explanation for the massive individual swings we saw - 21.9% Lab to Lib Dem in Redcar, where industry is struggling, 10% Lab to Con, 3% Con to Lib. If the incumbent was seen to be doing a good job, regardless of party, their vote went up. If they got caught fiddling their expenses and refused to quit, they got kicked out anyway.

All in all, interesting times ahead. As for what happens next, I have no clue. But we really have to fix our broken electoral system.
 
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brydiem said:
"BREAKING NEWS
Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg says he sticks to his view that the party with most votes and seats - the Conservatives - should seek to form a government."

:wall: DAMMIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :cry:

Not the Tories, not the Tories :(
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Yeah, watch them crash and burn, force another election and then get more seats.

Someone is going to end up with a short lived minority government followed by a loss at the next election, but who?
 
WillDAQ said:
Yeah, watch them crash and burn, force another election and then get more seats.

Someone is going to end up with a short lived minority government followed by a loss at the next election, but who?
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(dunno if this post is really an answer to yours- I'm procrastinating and really just rambling :lol:)

I honestly can't see a Tory-Lib Dem coalition lasting too long. Lib Dems are centre left-ish, they won't support policies like "reducing the BBC to core broadcasting", even if Cameron promises them the best damn electoral reform in the world. They would be forever tarred as "the party that swings whatever way is most popular when they see fit. That's somewhere you don't want to be in politics IMO- seen as the big 2 party's ass-kisser for a pity fuck. (sorry, really couldn't think of a better analogy there! :lol:)

But I am thinking you guys in the UK will get another election in the next year. Either one party/a coalition will gain enough popularity to re-call it or the pariliament will stagnate to the point where an election is necessary for the health of the UK. Sucky situation you are all in, but don't worry, we over here in Aussie-land will probably join you sometime this year :(
 
I can't see a Tory/Lib Dem coalition at all. Cameron has already ruled out reform of the electoral system.

Ah hell, Julia Goldsworthy has gone. That is another voice of scientific sanity. Welcome to some utterly bonkers policies on drugs and abortion.

Good news: I notice Phillippa "runs prayer sessions to cure people of being gay" Stroud lost her seat to the Lib Dems.

Edit: I rather suspect that Clegg, who has said that the Tories should have a shot at forming a Gvt said so knowing that they won't pay his price. So he can do a deal with Labour and look like he gave Cameron a chance.
 
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A Tory/LibDem coalition? On what will they be basing such a coalition on? Respect for the common law? Support for woman suffrage? A compromise of taking Lloyd George and Winston Churchill back to life?

Pardon me, but they really have very little in common..

Another question, who will take over after Gordon Brown if he steps down? I can't think of anyone who would really fit in.. But this election does remind me a bit of 74. Labor losing a lot of support in the midst of an economic crisis.
 
Well, im a bit disapointed with the results being a Tory supporter, i had hoped they would win out right, but i dont see them going along with the Lib Dems, although Nick Clegg might want it/hint towards it, I doubt the rest of his party will.
Im loving Northern Ireland atm :D Its where I come from and in fermanagh, the minister of agriculture for northern ireland, Michelle Gildernew, lost by 8 votes, just 8 votes, she is Sinn Fein, and Sinn Fein went and woke up their lawyers to get it all recounted :p its crazy because Sinn Fein have always had that seat I believe. Also, Robinson losing his seat? I guess it was expected given the scandal that went on, but to lose it to the Alliance party? Who the hell voted for that :|
 
https://pic.armedcats.net/k/kn/knarkas/2010/05/07/CHINA-BRITAIN-DIPL_1266303x.jpg
 
There won't be a coalition. There won't be a Lib/Con coalition for obvious reasons and Lab/Lib won't have enough to form a majority coalition either. The Conservatives will form a minority government, but agree a common economic package with the Liberals to vote through. Cameron will hold off on the big cuts and push through some populist policies, and then call another election in 6 months, and attempt to gain a majority.
 
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