With local elections following almost a year on from the formation of the Coalition government on a national scale, just how important are the local elections of councillors to the big 3 in London?
Many newspapers and political commentators are suggesting this will be a big test in the confidence of the coalition government and an early indication as to how far Labour has come in its big recovery since losing power.
The key factor I keep in mind however is the fact that these are local ward elections and not MP elections. Voters aren't voting on a local to national stage but on a very local stage which will (in my opinion) affect the way a lot of people approach voting. It certainly does for me.
The key factor I keep in mind however is the fact that these are local ward elections and not MP elections. Voters aren't voting on a local to national stage but on a very local stage which will (in my opinion) affect the way a lot of people approach voting. It certainly does for me.
"Local elections in England are due to take place on 5 May 2011 in:
36 Metropolitan Boroughs in England – all by thirds
49 Unitary authorities in England – 19 by thirds and 30 all-up (including Stoke-on-Trent)
194 Second-tier districts in England– 70 by thirds and 124 all-up
26 district councils in Northern Ireland – all-up
Elections to the National Assembly for Wales, Scottish Parliament and Northern Ireland
Assembly will also take place on 5 May 2011.
The Government intends for these elections to be held alongside a referendum on voting
reform, in order to minimise the number of occasions on which people are asked to vote."
Now I won't get out a calculator and them all up but that looks like a lot of councillors and elections to me!
So how important is the local election to the big national party?
With under a month to go till voting begins you'd expect some sort of coverage on the parties' websites so I had a look (in alphabetical order to show no bias of course!). As much as the subject enthuses me, I haven't all the time in the world to devote to StokeElect2011 so I've done this based solely on the home pages and direct links from the home page's articles etc.
With under a month to go till voting begins you'd expect some sort of coverage on the parties' websites so I had a look (in alphabetical order to show no bias of course!). As much as the subject enthuses me, I haven't all the time in the world to devote to StokeElect2011 so I've done this based solely on the home pages and direct links from the home page's articles etc.
Conservatives
The main headline of the Conservative party's website (April 9 at 1300) is (and in rather large font) 'CONSERVATIVES CONTEST 94% OF LOCAL ELECTION SEATS' with a big arrow leading to this article (click here) explaining how the Conservatives are dominating the field in local elections nationally with a nice picture of Minister Warsi looking informed and quotes from her regarding the elections in the article.
Good effort I'd say!
The main headline of the Conservative party's website (April 9 at 1300) is (and in rather large font) 'CONSERVATIVES CONTEST 94% OF LOCAL ELECTION SEATS' with a big arrow leading to this article (click here) explaining how the Conservatives are dominating the field in local elections nationally with a nice picture of Minister Warsi looking informed and quotes from her regarding the elections in the article.
Good effort I'd say!
Labour
The Labour page only really contains one clue they're thinking about the local elections - the 'Your Voice' section at the top of the home page. You find a small paragraph confirming that Labour Councillors will be standing against coalition cuts and a 2 minute video of Ed Milliband reflecting on his school days, his Dad (you can see the family resemblance!) and talking to all sorts of people around the country. (Watch it on youtube here) It bigs up the power of the people but doesn't actually refer to local elections in any way. This gives the Labour webpage the overall impression that the elections are happening but there is no huge effort on a national level to address them.
Liberal Democrats
The first thing you notice about the Lib Dem home page is that it contains a lot more in a lot less space. Their homepage is a little more interactive with a rotating news bar at the top containing 5 lead stories - two of which refer to the AV vote system and how to join the campaign for fairer votes. There's nothing to do with local elections or councillors to be easily seen though.
Despite this, the Lib Dems are the only party who have a whole website dedicated to Stoke-on-Trent rather than a particular MP or campaign in Stoke-on-Trent. Or at least this is how it appears if you type 'Conservatives Stoke', 'Labour Stoke' and 'Lib Dems Stoke' into google.
Overall
Overall I think it's safe to say the Conservatives have clearly taken the lead when it comes to their home page reflecting local elections as a high priority. Interestingly enough, and I try to remain a political commentator only, the Conservatives point out in their article linked above that Labour has failed to field a candidate in nearly 30% of seats nationally - despite their big comeback.
Overall I think it's safe to say the Conservatives have clearly taken the lead when it comes to their home page reflecting local elections as a high priority. Interestingly enough, and I try to remain a political commentator only, the Conservatives point out in their article linked above that Labour has failed to field a candidate in nearly 30% of seats nationally - despite their big comeback.
But the question at the end of the day is how much does it matter?
Are voters in local elections swayed by what they read and hear about 'Party X' in the news every day on a national scale or do people shut that all away and focus on which individuals they want running their local Council?
What do you think? Comments are free below with no need to register.
Also, this article only looks at one teeny aspect of the Big 3 in London - their websites.
Other factors contribute to their attitude and portrayal to the public of course!
Also, this article only looks at one teeny aspect of the Big 3 in London - their websites.
Other factors contribute to their attitude and portrayal to the public of course!
Which is more important to the Lib Dems - the local government elections or the AV referendum? I think there's a big chance that the Lib Dems are going to lose a lot of seats as people register a protest vote against their duplicity and broken pledges. At the same time if Nick Clegg doesn't get a yes to AV vote then his leadership will come under even greater pressure.
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