UK - December 2019 General Election

[dudalb]

Just one among a bunch of centrist boomers.

I think the kind of Command economy you seem to favor..where the Government had total control of the ecomony has been tried. Has never worked out too well.
But let's move this to another thread.

 

[trustbutverify]

Alastair Campbell on BBC: "If you tell people 'bugger off, you're a Tory', don't be surprised if they go and vote Tory."

Might have had something to do with it.

 

[ceptimus]

Stay strong remainers! If one ignores certain facts and figures, then this election result has been a win for remain.

 

[KDLarsen]

 

[Seismosaurus]

Corbyn announced that he "will not lead the party in any future general election campaign."

Colour me surprised.

 

[Seismosaurus]

BBC's forecast has a Conservative majority of 64 now, down from 87. Labour are holding onto a few seats they were expected to lose, it seems.

 

[KDLarsen]

Somewhat ironic, solid Brexiteer Caroline Flint has lost her seat, largely due to a swing to the Brexit party.

 

[Skeptic Ginger]

Does this count as a redo of the initial Brexit referendum? Seems like it settles the issue that a revote would have the same outcome. The Russian interference didn't change the election outcome hopefully.

 

[Arcade22]

Apparently Labours manifesto was very popular, beloved by almost all the people in the land, it's just a shame that nobody gave a damn about free full-fiber broadband for everyone or all new houses being carbon neutral.

 

[KDLarsen]

Does this count as a redo of the initial Brexit referendum? Seems like it settles the issue that a revote would have the same outcome. The Russian interference didn't change the election outcome hopefully.

I'll reserve judgement until the final figures are in at some point, but it's worth noting that the General Election uses the archaic and frankly undemocratic single constituency FPTP system, whereas the referendum is basically "Which options gets the most votes across the country".

At the moment (going by The Guardian's election tracker), across the country Labour, SNP and Lib Dems combined has recieved 750,000 more votes than the Conservatives, yet the Tories have 32 more seats overall.

Edit: Add the Green Party votes to that trio of parties, and the figures goes above 1 million votes.

 

[KDLarsen]

Second Portillo moment of the night, as Jo Swinson has lost her seat. Edit: By a staggering 149 votes. That has to sting, given how local activists were concerned about the lack of time she spent campaining in her constituency.

First was Nigel Dodds of the DUP losing his.

 

[IsThisTheLife]

Oh I suspect that Tom Watson and Emily Thornberry (at the very least) had already put the mechanism of a challenge in place before polling day. They will have either sounded out or secured funding sources, and built a support team from amongst other senior Labour MPs.

And as such, I fully expect things to be well underway by Monday. I expect Corbyn to announce he's stepping down (following the election of a new leader) some today (Friday). Things will be going gangbusters behind closed doors today and over the weekend as potential candidates try to figure out what level of support they might muster, and how they'll pay. I also imagine that the bosses of the 7 largest trades unions will be fairly heavily engaged today and over the weekend.

Interesting times ahead.....

Oh please, PLEEEZE let them elect her.

 

[Arcade22]

I was rooting for Lord Buckethead. At least he prevailed over Count Binface.

 

[Sideroxylon]

I think the kind of Command economy you seem to favor..where the Government had total control of the ecomony has been tried. Has never worked out too well.
But let's move this to another thread.

So lets stick with a growing wealth divide and worsening situation for workers.

 

[lionking]

Well if the exit poll is right, we're ******.

Lone Ranger to Tonto when faced with a hostile tribe "Looks like we're ******"

Tonto; "Who's "we" paleface"

Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

[a_unique_person]

Apparently Labours manifesto was very popular, beloved by almost all the people in the land, it's just a shame that nobody gave a damn about free full-fiber broadband for everyone or all new houses being carbon neutral.

Labour was losing votes to the Brexit Party. The Tory appeal to Nationalism was successful and a wonderful example of wedge politics. Labour lost votes elsewhere, of course, but the worst loss was it's traditional support to nationalist rednecks. The same tactics Convervative parties have used successfully in the USA and Australia.

 

[lionking]

That's democracy for ya, folks.

I think that the question which most needs answering is this: how the hell did the Labour party fail to capitalise in this election? The answer, I'm afraid, is (IMO) down to only two things: 1) the muddy and undeclarative Labour policy on Brexit; and 2) Jeremy Corbyn (who's also the chief architect of (1).

Labout has a shocking recent record of electing unelectables (by the whole national electorate, that is) as leader. Even though it's a truism that we vote for MPs and their parties and not for leaders/potential PMs, it's well understood in psephological circles that the choice of leader plays a significant role in the voting intentions of that small number of swing voters in key marginals who make all the difference in any election*. Ed Miliband was a disastrous choice - very few of those swing voters could envisage him as a global statesperson; and in many ways Corbyn was even worse for the same reasons. And what's more, the takeover at the top by the hard left faction resulted in the disillusionment, defection or retirement of many moderate left MPs. Coming back round to (1), Labour is just as split on Brexit that the Conservatives - in fact, very probably much more so. And there was no strong message on Brexit presented to the electorate.

I would be very highly confident that had a statesmanlike moderate such as, say, Chuka Umunna, been installed as Labour leader in 2017, Johnson very probably wouldn't even have tabled a GE for today: he'd have known pretty well that any GE would result in a fair-sized Labour majority.

(And always remember: the good fellows of the US elected the current Presidential incumbent....)


* i.e. there is a vast majority of the electorate who has always and will always vote for whichever political party they're aligned with. It's only ever the relatively tiny number of swing voters in marginal seats who make all the difference.

Only Corbyn could lose to Bozo Boris. He was a disaster from start to finish and should fall on his sword quickly and silently. He won't though and will blame everyone but him for this disaster. Labour has to move quickly to select an electable leader (if one exists) or they are royally ******. Labor in Australia is in the same position.

 

[KDLarsen]

And that's Dennis Skinner gone.

 

[lionking]

Before this debacle, talk like that would have been considered war-mongering, Zionist treason within Labour's power center. It probably will remain that way for quite a while.

I would have voted for Corbyn's party, Had I held British citizenship. But with my nose firmly clamped.

Hey, same here. I've always been of the view that a bad Labour/Labor government is better than a good Tory/Liberal government, but Corbyn has led me to reevaluate this belief.

Is any seriously surprised with this outcome?

 

[lionking]

Oh I suspect that Tom Watson and Emily Thornberry (at the very least) had already put the mechanism of a challenge in place before polling day. They will have either sounded out or secured funding sources, and built a support team from amongst other senior Labour MPs.

And as such, I fully expect things to be well underway by Monday. I expect Corbyn to announce he's stepping down (following the election of a new leader) some today (Friday). Things will be going gangbusters behind closed doors today and over the weekend as potential candidates try to figure out what level of support they might muster, and how they'll pay. I also imagine that the bosses of the 7 largest trades unions will be fairly heavily engaged today and over the weekend.

Interesting times ahead.....

Yes, and this is where there things are very similar with UK Labour and Australia Labor. Although much diminished, trade unions wield great power.