Ot- May calls for election in June.

[Oldtimeram]

I will vote for the Whigs if I vote at all

[ramAnag]

Rag: underhand, but I think all such tactical voting is equally so.

Rog: yes my underhand tactics did work, rather than choose a song I could sing best, I chose a song I could sing OK, knowing my rival couldn't sing the other song. I won, and karma emerged all too soon as the bar owner chose my winners song to be something I sounded like a strangled budgie on. Maybe such karma will affect some (or even better, all!) political parties this time around. Also strange that Tim Farron (a Christian) should be hounded to reveal his theological views when Theresa May (another Christian) has not.

I don't agree that all tactical voting is 'underhand'. Hypothetically (almost), if my natural inclination, given a decent leader, was to vote Labour, but seeing as that isn't the case and because I live in a place where Labour - even with a decent leader - haven't a snowballs chance in hell I then vote 'tactically' and give my vote to the LibDems because my main realistic aim is to vote against a Tory landslide,
what's wrong with or 'underhand' about that?
Far cry from stooping so low as to join the Tory Party explicitly to vote for Michael Gove as leader because I suspect he'd have been an electoral liability.
Good and fair point about the different treatment Farron and May have received over their Christian beliefs.

Me too OTR.

[Andy_Faber]

I don't agree that all tactical voting is 'underhand'. Hypothetically (almost), if my natural inclination, given a decent leader, was to vote Labour, but seeing as that isn't the case and because I live in a place where Labour - even with a decent leader - haven't a snowballs chance in hell I then vote 'tactically' and give my vote to the LibDems because my main realistic aim is to vote against a Tory landslide,
what's wrong with or 'underhand' about that?
Far cry from stooping so low as to join the Tory Party explicitly to vote for Michael Gove as leader because I suspect he'd have been an electoral liability.
Good and fair point about the different treatment Farron and May have received over their Christian beliefs.

Me too OTR.

I guess there's degrees of underhandness. My constituency has a massive majority which is unlikely to be impacted by tactical voting so I can place my vote in a pure manner for my party of choice (which, just to raise Swale's blood pressure again, is yet another change from the party I voted for last time).

Re Farron, I actually think he told an electorally convenient fib, and he'll be really struggling with his conscience on that one. It would certainly be more even-handed to ask the same question of Theresa May and, for instance, Sadiq Khan as I think the whole LBGT thing is relatively easy for 'believers' to reconcile themselves to at a superficial, multicoloured-flag-waving level (and an easy hit for those in the population who want another I'm worthy' badge to add to their collection), but a whole lot harder when it comes to the mechanics. Slightly off the subject maybe, but IMO its another weapon in the armory of those who want to win at all costs

[Ram59]

Interesting to see that the communist party are not fighting any seats for the first time in 97 years. They are instructing their supporters to vote labour, is this a sign about how far left Labour have gone?

[ramAnag]

Interesting to see that the communist party are not fighting any seats for the first time in 97 years. They are instructing their supporters to vote labour, is this a sign about how far left Labour have gone?

Wouldn't have thought so. More likely the realisation that voting Communist is a wasted vote...that the CP can no longer afford a host of lost deposits... and that the most important thing at this election is to try and prevent a landslide victory for a hard Brexit and further public service cuts.

[Andy_Faber]

Wouldn't have thought so. More likely the realisation that voting Communist is a wasted vote...that the CP can no longer afford a host of lost deposits... and that the most important thing at this election is to try and prevent a landslide victory for a hard Brexit and further public service cuts.

Back on tactical voting, if ever the conservatives were stupid enough to adopt the Labour leader election system, the best possible Labour spoiler would be to vote for Jeremy Hunt. What a bloody tool. My views on the NHS go way beyond anything he can influence, but he's such a party political robot it makes my skin crawl. This morning for instance, I was just getting over the awfully badly sequenced traffic lights in Castle Donington (last night!) when on the radio comes Hunt, being asked what are clearly not party-election questions, yet FOUR times he bangs in blatantly electioneering answers. Just a shame the interviewer was from BBC, if it was me I'd have told him to **** off my show. I think that was a rant.

[swaledale]

I guess there's degrees of underhandness. My constituency has a massive majority which is unlikely to be impacted by tactical voting so I can place my vote in a pure manner for my party of choice (which, just to raise Swale's blood pressure again, is yet another change from the party I voted for last time).

Re Farron, I actually think he told an electorally convenient fib, and he'll be really struggling with his conscience on that one. It would certainly be more even-handed to ask the same question of Theresa May and, for instance, Sadiq Khan as I think the whole LBGT thing is relatively easy for 'believers' to reconcile themselves to at a superficial, multicoloured-flag-waving level (and an easy hit for those in the population who want another I'm worthy' badge to add to their collection), but a whole lot harder when it comes to the mechanics. Slightly off the subject maybe, but IMO its another weapon in the armory of those who want to win at all costs

Never raised my blood pressure last time tbh! The electorate generally get the government they deserve IMO! But if I hear the phrase "strong and stable leadership" again I may well sling whatever medium broadcasting it out of the window, still I guess its better than "hard working families" which presumably disregarded all those hard working people who werent in a family.

[Andy_Faber]

Never raised my blood pressure last time tbh! The electorate generally get the government they deserve IMO! But if I hear the phrase "strong and stable leadership" again I may well sling whatever medium broadcasting it out of the window, still I guess its better than "hard working families" which presumably disregarded all those hard working people who werent in a family.

Right with you on that one Swale, a crass effort at 'branding', sounded pretty pathetic when they were all segued together on PM earlier

[ramAnag]

Never raised my blood pressure last time tbh! The electorate generally get the government they deserve IMO! But if I hear the phrase "strong and stable leadership" again I may well sling whatever medium broadcasting it out of the window, still I guess its better than "hard working families" which presumably disregarded all those hard working people who werent in a family.

'Strong and Stable Leadership' and 'The Coalition of Chaos'...I sense the unprincipled hand of Lynton Crosby at work. Not quite as insulting as Theresa May's PPB claim the other night though, which went so far as to describe the Tories as standing for a meritocracy rather than being the party of privilege.

[Romanis]

I do think Mdm May is a different kind of Tory. Unlike the old Eton boys club, I think she hopes to bring proper meritocracy.
However in the meantime she can't totally move in that direction given hundreds of years of such practice.

But a whopping majority of her hand picked candidates and the ability to introduce her own style, will afford her the ability to do move the party in that direction.

But let's face it, voting for any of the other parties, will only lead to chaos, sniping and rudderless leadership.

May is the only 1 that can offer stable leadership. Perhaps that's just what the country needs at the moment. Someone to dominate and offer a clear vision.
Why not take a chance with her?