It's a greater investment of time, to be sure, but it's also a way to be the person making the decisions.
You probably won't get to be an MP from obscurity (although you might be a candidate for a smaller party). But parties of all colours struggle to recruit councillors, and minor parties can hold office this way. In the last county elections in Cambridgeshire the Tories actually lost overall control of the council because of voters turning to UKIP.
Sure, there's a lot happening at national level that is important, and will trickle down to, and restrict, councils. But I also increasingly find that the things that actually affect me and my community day-to-day are in the hands of councillors.
There is precedent for building support at a local level resulting in an MP: Brighton's Green council now have one. At the very least you could find the candidates from the major parties re-positioning themselves because they are aware of local support for minor parties.
Also, you don't need to be a member of a party to approach your MP and councillors. They don't know if you voted for them last time or will vote for you next time, but they're keen for you to do so. Elected representative have to vote on far more things that they can possibly understand in detail. If you know what you're talking about and approach someone who hasn't made their mind up, or only holds an opinion loosely, you can influence them without even voting.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2013-10-28 02:46 pm (UTC)It's a greater investment of time, to be sure, but it's also a way to be the person making the decisions.
You probably won't get to be an MP from obscurity (although you might be a candidate for a smaller party). But parties of all colours struggle to recruit councillors, and minor parties can hold office this way. In the last county elections in Cambridgeshire the Tories actually lost overall control of the council because of voters turning to UKIP.
Sure, there's a lot happening at national level that is important, and will trickle down to, and restrict, councils. But I also increasingly find that the things that actually affect me and my community day-to-day are in the hands of councillors.
There is precedent for building support at a local level resulting in an MP: Brighton's Green council now have one. At the very least you could find the candidates from the major parties re-positioning themselves because they are aware of local support for minor parties.
Also, you don't need to be a member of a party to approach your MP and councillors. They don't know if you voted for them last time or will vote for you next time, but they're keen for you to do so. Elected representative have to vote on far more things that they can possibly understand in detail. If you know what you're talking about and approach someone who hasn't made their mind up, or only holds an opinion loosely, you can influence them without even voting.