The Brexit Party has pulled a load of its candidates and UKIP is fielding only a few so as an avid Brexiteer I looked up the candidates in my patch. I found a Conservative, a Labour, a LibDem and a Green. I would imagine there are quite a few constituencies like mine.
I wouldn’t vote Labour in a month of Sundays, with Jeremy Corbyn refusing to say whether or not he would prefer to Leave or Remain. And with their pro-Europe polices, the LibDems and Greens are even worse. The Tory? A possibility, as long as he was an ardent Brexiteer, but I found that he had been parachuted into the constituency following the retirement of the sitting Conservative. Yes, he claimed to be a Brexiteer, promising to ‘Get Brexit done’ but that to me is just sycophantically following his blessed blond-haired leader.
Married to a member of the House of Lords, he’s a SPaD, currently a special advisor to the Prime Minister, previously a Chief of Staff to the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office and a special advisor to the defence secretary – in other words a professional politician. A nice enough chap perhaps, but not one I could take to in a big way, especially as his Twitter account which, if I recall, was a little revealing, has subsequently been deleted.
So what to do about this situation. I really don’t want to vote for any of these candidates but I am not prepared to give up my right to vote, so I had a look around and found a website called Vote None. This seemed to be set up for the last election or the one before that but it contains quite a lot of information about what to do if you need to vote ‘None of the Above’.
As we all know, the option to vote for ‘None of the Above’ is not available on ballot papers here in the UK – it’s an American thing. There have been many petitions to include this during elections but we really need to tell TPTB that there is a need.
If you wanted to vote NOTA, you could always spoil your ballot paper but that would go down in the records as simply ‘spoilt’. Yes, certainly, spoilt ballots are counted and may even be reported in the press if there are enough of them. There were nearly 100,000 spoilt votes in the 2015 General Election, which would be enough to elect three or four MPs into Parliament if they were all in the same constituencies, but as they were spread thinly across the country the numbers ceased to matter.
Around a third of registered voters didn’t even bother to vote so if a few of these were prepared to go along to their polling station and vote ‘None of the Above’, that number could be significant.
And according to Vote None, there is a way. Firstly as a protest vote it should be very clear that you don’t want to vote for any of the candidates. Many spoilt votes are ‘void for uncertainty’ about who the voter wanted to vote for. Your vote, if you wish to go down this route, should not be uncertain at all. Then it can be classified as a protest vote.
According to the Electoral Commission, there are four reasons why ballot papers may be rejected:
- want of an official mark
- voting for more than one candidate
- writing or mark by which the voter could be identified
- unmarked or void for uncertainty
So, if your ballot paper hasn’t been stamped by the poll clerk with the official stamp, it will be rejected; if you vote for more than one candidate it will be rejected; if you sign or put your name on the ballot paper it will be rejected; if you leave your ballot paper blank or it is not clear who you are voting for, it will be rejected.
The commission says a statement must be prepared showing the number of ballot papers rejected under each of these four headings, which will all come under the ‘spoilt’ category.
BUT if you want your vote to be classified as a ‘protest’ vote, make sure you don’t ‘spoil’ it. Don’t put a cross or tick anywhere on the paper, don’t write your name or sign it, and make your protest quite clear – so that there is no uncertainty.
Write the word ‘NONE’ diagonally across all the names so that anyone can understand you don’t want to vote for any of the candidates. This negates the grounds that your intention is not certain. Then put a single line diagonally through all the boxes. Don’t put a cross anywhere or your vote will be deemed ‘uncertain’ and don’t write anything else at all on your ballot paper.
Don’t use the pencil they give you in the voting booth – that could be erased by an unscrupulous member of staff. Take a thick black pen into the polling booth and do it with that – remember, what you do in that booth is your own business.
Using material from the Electoral Commission’s own website 
Vote None gives an example of what it should look like.
The Electoral Commission’s instructions say that you should show the official mark to the polling clerk before you put your ballot into the black box but in my experience they have never asked to see the mark; I have just put it in the box.
If you are queried or challenged in any way, I would imagine you would be completely within your right to refuse to open the folded ballot paper to show the clerk what you have written; after all, your vote is secret, isn’t it?
I don’t know what would happen if hundreds, thousands or even more of us refuse to vote for any candidate, but it will certainly be the way in which I will exercise my democratic right.
There is some value in what is happening.
Push and push and keep pushing. So many are seeing the true nature of these politicians. So I urge them to keep pushing. Then the dam will burst.
In that sense this election will be a set up for a hard fall.
Not for politicians they are already in the gutter.
Kim – quite true, but we mustn’t allow ourselves to be dragged into the gutter with them.
The most monumental lies have, and are, being told by the three ‘main’ Parties.
They really are, as you suggest, scraping the bottom of the barrel and testing credulity to its limit.
I suppose I am pretty similar to lots of people during this surreal period.
OK! I know I am pretty much blinkered presently, but the only politician I can listen to with any interest is Farage.
I try and watch him with as much criticism as all of them – yet somehow he STILL comes across as the most consistently honest of them all.
There is no power on earth that will convince me other than to promote and vote for TBP.
I see no reasonable alternative.
P.S. Yes, keep pushing!
Betrayal is on the way folks, and we will see this very soon, especially if they have a workable majority. I won’t give these people ANY electoral mandate.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/11/25/brussels-hit-britain-fishing-ultimatum-day-brexit/
Johnson and the Tories have fooled the masses once again….and the masses deserve all they get…
What an absolute mess. Thankfully I have a Brexit Party man to vote for and my proxy is already briefed. I really don’t care if he is defeated and will not vote tactically (which would have to be the Cons). Hopefully a sufficient number will give him their vote to prevent his losing the deposit but I am hoping for many more, enough to scare the pants off any other who beats him.
Hardly any exercise in democracy. If you don’t vote you have to accept what you get. The only logical response is to vote for whichever party you think is the least worst option and subsequently join the party you really want to vote for next time and get a candidate on the ballot paper and then work hard to campaign for them.
Tim – Quite right. Vote for the least bad option. At least this time there is one definite pro brexit option with a chance of forming a government.
Then I shall take a close look at Ukip and Brexit party.
I have never voted Tory in my life before – and I’m 81 – but I will this time because otherwise I have a choice of Labour, Libdem, or Green, all of whom are determined to remain in the EU. Politics is the art of the possible. Boris’s Brexit will be better than no Brexit at all and no kind of Brexit ever is the almost certain risk if we leave the way clear for any of the three mentioned to form a government, alone or in coalition. I don’t want to be responsible for such a catastrophe after struggling for 3.5 years to have the democratic result of the referendum implemented. Sadly this is a case where the desire for a perfect solution, which I too would have preferred (i.e. a clean break) might well be the cause of total loss for ever and a day. Spoiled ballot papers are a futile gesture. It might make the non-voter feel good but it is of absolutely no practical use whatsoever..
Neville Heath-Fowler – You are right also. Boris’ Brexit IS the best we can hope for – it’s possible.
As someone who has often been a Presiding Officer, it is up to voters what they put on their ballot paper.
The advice given about how to make intentions clear, seems fine to me.
However, it will still be classified as some form of spoiled ballot paper.
It also has to be remembered that it is only the vote counters dealing with the group of ballot papers such protest votes are in, who will see them. They might ultimately also be seen by the candidates, and others including the Returning officer.
These protests will have minimal effect in reality.
There is also the option of putting “None of these. My vote goes to…. who are not standing>”
The protest would be better directed at the political party you wanted to stand, but didn’t, and clearly The Brexit Party have let a lot of people disenfranchised.
The problem with a wasted vote or not voting, is that one of the candidates will always become elected, however few votes there are.
I think the best option is to look at the least worst candidate and vote for them.
However, I would certainly myself never vote for any separatist, as requested by a couple of the comments, even if they said they were against the EU.
In Scotland most people would rather vote for a pro-UK candidate than anti-EU one who also wants to leave the Union.
That is the reality and as someone who helped the Better Together campaign, it will continue to be the case until the SNP are completely defeated.
OK. That’s the system but don’t kid yourself it is democracy in action. It is merely suffrage.
Thank you for the article, Debbie, and for the proposals.
However, when I spoil my paper, I want to give a reason WHY I do not want to vote for any of the candidates, namely because none of them are saying they want us to leave the European Union without a deal.
Consequently, I intend to write NO DEAL BREXIT on my ballot paper.
Yes, I know it will just be lumped in with all the other spoilt papers but at least it will send the message I want to convey.
Interesting article, Debbie.
While we both will be doing what you plan to do I have gone a step further.
I am campaigning AS IF I WERE STANDING THIS TIME AS AN INDEPENDENT. The reason for this is as follows:
people are absolutely fed up with party politicians and that needs to be exploited. But because they do not understand WHY voting for an Independent is the only SAFE alternative I shall be putting out a leaflet (JUST AS IF i WERE A CANDIDATE)which then leads them to my full leaflet EXPOSING THE PARTY SYSTEM to the reader.
BUT, in addition, with the help of some art work from my friend Michael Dunn and a table cloth I have prepared a large banner headed FED UP WITH PARTY POLITICIANS? and various clauses from my leaflet why it is dangerous to vote PARTY. My only obstacle at the moment is the weather!!
Since I am unable to attach a photo of my banner to this comment I invite readers to get the best of both worlds by contacting me on john.cruttwell@sfr.fr for a FREE copy of my article HOW POLITICAL PARTIES CORRUPT THE CONSTITUTION and to obtain a photo of my banner. best regards martin cruttwell
What an indictment of our shattered democracy that over large swathes of Southern England and certainly the South West, voters and Leavers have no one to vote for. 17.5, probably many more now, voted to Leave EU 3.5 YEARS’ ago, yet we have no Leave candidate to vote for. Nothing illustrates more clearly the immense chasm between voter and Parliament. ALL UNconservative candidates are signed up to the Maybot/Johnson surrender treaty and he has again categorically ruled out any Leave with no deal. So the choice is: Conservative = associate membership of the EU for an indeterminate period ; Labour = Remain or Remain with another referendum ; LibDim, Green, SNP, Plaid alliance = Revoke the result of the rerferendum and Remain.
Everyone in these circumstances should go to vote, but as Debbie says write NONE and cross out all voting boxes with a line. Personally, I shall also write BREXIT PARTY to make it crystal clear why I am voting NONE.
IMO – the overwhelming need – if we even hope to make a pretence at having the merest CHANCE of leaving according to our 17.5 wishes, is to vote TBP and fight the Tories like Hell if we achieve about ten MP’s. THAT is our ONLY hope.
I have no one to vote for in this constituency and i will not vote for the insincere brexit champion offered by the tories. I will spoil my vote carefully according to the advice above.
The idea of a NOTA option on a ballot paper appeals to me but I would like it to be recognised and made relevant. Perhaps if winning candidates had to win by at least double the NOTA vote for example. Or if the NOTA vote won then all candidates withdraw and a new election with new candidates is called. The present system relies on huge numbers of voters voting to stop the other party. Surely if enough voters dislike all the options then the result should reflect that fact and not elect another career politician?
Course electoral room is well over due but will not happen because winning parties will not change a system they think they can win/exploit/manipulate. Strange indeed that the so called conservatives have no plans on electoral reform and pursue lefty policy that puts more and more seats out of their electoral reach. If the conservativez are not interested in their own future voting base why do they seek to drag the rest of us into their Blairite nightmare?
Apparently there is a regular petition to include NOTA in British elections, Matt, but as you say, why would TPTB alter a system to give them less of a chance of winning. However, the more people who vote for NOTA the more pressure is brought upon the Electoral Commission to include the option. So, vote NOTA and let’s see if we can get it included on ballot papers. It’ll take time, but as long as we persevere, it’ll happen … eventually.
Debbie – Procrastination is the thief of time – the way to Hell is paved with good intentions…
Persevere you say? At which point do we STOP persevereing? When the horse has bolted? When the die is cast – when
this election, as EVERYONE is convinced, is the election of not one but three lifetimes – and cannot be reversed.
Time is not on the side of LEAVERS, whichever Party they purport to support.
At this point in time the choice is the Boris/EU/May SURRENDER – which is what we will indubitably get if the Tories win this coming GE, and this is NOT the LEAVE we in the majority voted for – is it?
When and how does your proposal help us to leave our way?
By writing NONE on a voting slip?
With great respect to you, and I admire your courage and dedication, failing to vote for the only Leave candidate in this election is to my mind the worst possible move.
Voting NONE at this stage tells the Electoral Commission NOTHING positive at all.
Voting LEAVE now and into the future is quite specific.
Not everything is ‘right’ about the Brexit Party – of course not, it has not had the time to ‘bed’ itself into our Political System (so-called!). But it is the only choice we are left with to register some hope to re-establish freedom and sovereignty.
Debbie – I would appreciate a response…….?
But what happens if you don’t have the option of voting for The Brexit Party Mr Paul? If you can only vote for a Remainer or BRINO, then what?
Debbie – then that is a ‘fait accompli’ – Yes, the Con(fidence trickster) Party clearly have a FORM of Leave so we are forced to give them our vote when TBP are not fielding a Candidate.
Our aim should be, as I have suggested on multiple occasions, to get SOME Brexit Party Members of Parliament into a modicum of power.
In other words I suppose I am advocating a UKIP Brexit Party Temporary Alliance, where the heck is the problem we MUST have a foot in the door. From there amazing things COULD be possible.
Sad to say your completely negative suggestion is a path to……….NOWHERE.
The very last thing I wish to see is a total Tory landslide……FATAL to a PROPER, VOTED FOR LEAVE.
MrP5a
”In Scotland most people would rather vote for a pro-UK candidate than anti-EU ”
Hogwash? OK what about this then? And yes this is the sort of option most of Scotland has:-
– Conservative arch remainer
– SNP remainer (happy to give fishing away)
– Liberal Non-democrat remainer who does not give a stuff what YOU think
– Labour anti-British remainer
”failing to vote for the only Leave candidate in this election is to my mind the worst possible move”
Sorry to say, you are talking out of your hat.
No?? OK see above – who to go for then?
Well, are you feeling lucky to get out of the Common Market? Well, are you?
I wish I had gone forward to stand as an independent Brexiteer. My family and friends were negative to this and little support. I’m still spitting feathers at the Farage sell out.
Colin. “The real war to regain our great nation and democracy and the right to decide our own futures has yet to commence”
Correct. It is not just a matter of getting Brexit but it is holding onto it. Only by changing the face of Parliament can we achieve our goal. Remainers are embedded into every orifice of the public sector with Remainers also having their people in place in every NGO, corporate sector, academia, charity, think tanks, lobby groups, police, judiciary and media. We must get people into Westminster who are prepared to ‘re-educate’ them or replace them with our people.
Colin – total common sense, which gives us at least a CHANCE to influence the future – voting NONE in effect gives us ……? NONE!
Absolutely spot-on Colin!
Colin – Good on you! From where I see it the UK has surely gone raving mad.
Farage is taking so much flak ON OUR BEHALF.
The despicable BBC are determined to blow Farage out of the water.
Another Mr Paul soliloquy…………..
The glib nonsense spouted by that swamp referred to as ‘the media’ is tantamount to treating us like imbeciles – the way we are reacting perhaps is proving them right?
The question to me is why should I allow myself to be manipulated by essentially dumb, clones of mainly preening female (and I love women!) ‘celebrities’ mouthing the scripts of the anti-Brexit BBC?
Who do they represent? Themselves- all of them want to be a Jeremy Paxman or Andrew Neill – let me tell them – they ain’t got it!
The whole media ‘system’ is bent! Crooked! Constantly talking down to us as though we were dimwits. And what do we do to counter them?
Well we are now urged to THROW OUR VOTES AWAY! Lawd in ‘eaven!
Even normally bright, sensible people have ‘lost it’ – “……
Farage?
You all did love him once, – not without cause;
What cause withholds you, then, to vote for him?
O judgment thou art fled to brutish beasts, and men have lost their reason!
……..bear with me for my heart is in the coffin there with Brexit….
(Yes, I know, a gross paraphrase!)
Once more we have the offering of the Harrow/Eton mob who have been taught to believe, above every other belief, that they have a God-given right to rule our country.
Farage is completely right in his assessment of Johnson. Absolutely 100%. Johnson was a ‘plant’ from the start, and Farage, a wheeler-dealer, has ‘sussed him out’.
Apparently boyishly, fumbling-bumbling, continually his repeating the fallacy that we are ‘leaving’ the EU.
Examine his ‘life-performance’ – he has lived off words, words, words – not actions – and just remember, with Boris, what you SEE is what you will get.
THIS IS THE SAME WITHDRAWAL AGREEMENT WHICH BROUGHT MAY TO HER KNEES. WE ARE NOT LEAVING under this surrender document.
With his pals such as Cameron slinking in the shadows, he is patently mouthing lie after lie – and all the ‘ Corrie-watchers’ and other ‘suckers’ are totally bemused.
Boris rarely, if ever, actually completes a cogent statement – and that is exactly how he likes it.
For years he has performed like The Scarlet Pimpernel. “They seek him here, they seek him there” . Boris has been a master of disguise and has managed to confuse the electorate but Farage is one of the few who have understood his ‘treasonous’ strategy. To coin a phrase?
Set a thief to catch a thief.
Biscotte – quite honestly my heart bleeds for you – most sincerely.
Utter frustration.
It is not always practical in these posts to express oneself adequately – but of course I can see, and even feel, your dilemma
.God alone knows what I would do in your situation.
My only plea, to those who can do so is, wherever possible to support leave – and alternatively the lesser of evils is then to go for Tory (sticks in the craw doesn’t it!)
I still believe we are one of the greatest Nations on earth – with all our faults – there has never been an Alliance like ours – and if it fails – we will never experience the likes again.
I am too long in the tooth to be as active as I would like to be – but my thoughts often go out to Sir Walter Scott’s “Breathes there the man……………” I’m quite certain you know it!
Good Luck!
Thanks, Debbie. I live in a similarly structured constituency as you and had, reluctantly, prepared not to vote or else add ‘none of the above’. Now you’ve provided me with an alternative, which is great!
A pleasure Michael. Let’s get this campaign rolling. Tell all your friends, and whatever you do, don’t waste your vote. VOTE NONE!
Memo to ViV,
Is it possible Viv if you could keep this sample NOTA Vote Paper at the front of your site for a few weeks please. or would that be illegal? or something..?
Leave that one with me.
I may be lucky (or not) to have an alternative candidate to vote for, in the coming election. As well as the perennial Con/Lab/Lib/SNP which are not of interest at all, there is a Scottish Libertarian party candidate (no I hadn’t heard of them either) who may just get my vote. The major problem is that they want independence for Scotland, not only from UK, not in favour of that, but also from the EU so while I am in favour of that, the idea of total independence does not appeal. I haven’t researched much more.
If I do vote for them, it will be just a protest vote but what really appeals in the absence of the opportunity for a meaningful vote, would be to take part in a nationwide protest by spoiling ballot papers in exactly the same way as I feel this would really get some attention.
As an aside, the ballot paper for Committee of a national and indeed international club of which I am a member, there was the facility to vote against any or all of those standing. I felt this was not fair for unpaid, voluntary positions but I would love to see such a system for General Elections. It may just be that voter turnout would increase significantly and be more democratic in representing people’s views.
I’m standing in Dundee East as an independent, supporting Brexit AND Scots independence. I’m not a nationalist but a radical decentralist, with local patriotism; I’d be for independence for my native Fife (pop. 330,000) if my fellow Fifers wanted it. Microstates are the future; let’s balkanise Europe, not least because the smaller the state, the less influence the MSM have.
Dundee eh? All power to your elbow. If you get our fishing back you may not have to order smokies in advance. And once they were affordable..
Dundee must rank up there with London and Edinburgh for difficulty in 1. finding somewhere to park and 2. paying for somewhere to park. At least the road signs can be sort of trusted unlike many British cities.
Park by the side of the monstrosity it’s usually empty’
Fife Industry. Nairns, Biscuits,Shipyards and Oil sevices Fish Burntisland is a lovely friendly town once they ‘ve told you your English and keep in your place etc.Didn’t they used to mine something there.” Best of all ‘ It’s already a Kingdom’
A country protest vote. UKIP have repeatesly been suggested that that could be the way forward, instead of pretending to be a governing party.
Jim R – Now that is a good idea – General Elections inviting us to vote AGAINST the ones we don’t want. Very interesting possibility. I could vote against all EXCEPT Tory and Brexit. Wouldn’t that be like having 2 votes but only one of them counting – ie the one that had the best chance. Maybe not. I’m no statistician.