Electioneering

London Fields # 78
First published Inpress, Melbourne on 19 May 2010
NB: Each column has a name, but these do not appear in print; printed versions may differ slightly to those displayed here

Watching the media coverage of the recent UK General Election, I was reminded of a 1970’s student film called (something like) ”Fraser Opens Monash Toilets“ (although I couldn‘t find reference to it on Google). Anyway, the film in question features reportage from the front line of a student protest against Malcolm Fraser’s campus visit - the violent camera shakes indicating a thronging mass seemingly on the verge of riot. That is until you see the long shot which shows that all the fracas and pushing is actually the TV cameramen jostling each other to make it appear as though they were at the centre of a mêlée. Certainly I’ve never seen an election where the depiction of the situation varied so dramatically depending on the source which was providing the information.

Electoral reform had been a major issue throughout the campaigns and the end results seemed to make the need for an overhaul of the current system even clearer. As the saga unfolded, everything else became muddier; an election with no clear winner, talk of minority governments, rainbow coalitions, and possible stalemates which would lead to another election. There was much that made it feel like a US Presidential election, with leaders rather than parties being the focus, and three live 90 minute televised debates between these three leaders (of the main English parties, much to the annoyance of Welsh and Scottish parties who were not offered a part). Catchphrases from the Obama campaign crept in as well, and on the election day itself, The Sun featured a reworking Shepard Fairey’s iconic poster as its cover with Obama replaced by an image of David Cameron.

Yet there was no landmark victory. With no clear winner, Gordon Brown remained as Prime Minister, while the only clear losers were the British National Party who were comprehensively trounced in their attempt to gain a seat in Barking, and in the local elections for Barking and Dagenham Council, all 12 BNP councillors lost their seats. The only decisive victory came in Brighton, where the Green Party won their first ever seat. In London, Labour actually did well - my seat recorded a swing of over 5% swing in their favour, and they gained control of eight more councils in the local elections. After five days and much horse bartering, Brown resigned and a coalition government was formed between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats. And while it seemed that the nation as a whole has been more politicised by the live debates and ongoing saga of the hung parliament, it didn’t stop a large number of viewers contacting the BBC to complain that they had bumped popular soaps EastEnders and Holby City off their schedules to show these historic events live. The next morning saw The Sun relegate it Page Three girl to page 15 (well it had lots of photos of other types of tit to put on the preceding pages).

Amongst all the mess, one thing remains abundantly clear: no one got the government for which they had voted. Perhaps this will be a good thing? Certainly the scrapping of the ID card seems to be a good start, but I fear for the future of the BBC, and worry about the changes in the no confidence rules tied into the new fixed five year parliamentary terms. The other certainty is that the mother of all parliaments is desperately in need of renovation. This last election saw the largest voter turnout since the Blair Labour government came to power, but still only 65.1% of those on the roll bothered to make their voices heard (although in a travesty of democratic process, some hundreds of voters were left unable to vote due to understaffed polling stations). The UK system of first past the post even lead to a council seat being decided on a coin toss as both candidates had received exactly the same number of votes. It seems likely that there will be a move to Alternative Vote (like the Australian preferential vote) with other possibilities of reform (proportional representation) going to committee and perhaps referendum, and an elected upper house even further away. The Liberal Democrats offered themselves to the voting public as an alternative to the two major parties, and now find themselves actively aligned in government with one of them. Only time will tell if those who voted for them this time around may find themselves humming The Who‘s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” in 2015.


© James McGalliard 2010