When I was 18-years-old, I remember being rather excited about being able to vote for the first time. I remember going to the polling station and marvelling at how marking an X in a box with a pencil on a piece of paper made me feel more connected with the adult world I was entering.
Sadly, that excitement faded a little over the next couple of years as I pondered the options available and struggled to find a candidate or party who stood for what I believed in, and so I briefly toyed with the idea of not voting next time round. After all, no one likes making a decision without all the facts, right?
The subject must have come up one evening during a discussion with some friends because I clearly recall being reminded of the importance of voting by an erudite young chap called Linus. He pointed out to me that, less than a century ago, I wouldn’t have been entitled to vote at all and this made me wonder if I really wanted to throw away what so many women had fought for simply because I didn’t want to make a decision.
Although the movement for women’s suffrage began in the UK in 1872, women did not get the vote until over 30 years later. Thanks to the “deeds not words” of the Women’s Social and Political Union, in 1918 the right to vote was extended to single women over the age of 30, with universal suffrage for all citizens over 21 finally arriving in 1928.
Imagine living in time or place where you were not allowed to cast a vote for who you wanted to make important decisions on your behalf. Imagine not having the slightest say in how your country was run and having no one to turn to when you wanted to raise an issue and make your voice heard. It might be difficult to choose between two or three very similar political parties when deciding who to vote for in an election, but what would life be like with no choice at all?
For all their faults, most politicians do listen to their constituents and will take their issues and concerns to a higher level if required. Just because a few democratically elected MPs look like they can’t be trusted, doesn’t mean that there’s no point in voting at all. The media isn’t interested in the majority of politicians who simply get on with the job at hand and, in these days of increased accountability and transparency, it’s becoming more and more difficult for the corrupt few to remain in parliament anyway.
As for the tricky decision of who to vote for, do remember that running a country is an extremely difficult job and compromises continually have to be made in order to attempt to find the best solution for the majority. Chances are that no individual party is going to align perfectly with all your views, so just find the one which suits you best. Until a more representative voting system is established, even using your vote strategically to try and keep out the party you really don’t want to be in power is a perfectly valid choice.
With a general election on the horizon in the UK, it seems appropriate to remind people of the importance of using their vote. When the media is full of information on what each of the main parties stand for, it doesn’t really take than much research to make an informed decision so there really shouldn’t be anything stopping you.