Tomorrow concludes one of the tightest election races in history, and following a combination of media campaigning, ill-advised racial profiling of Northern pensioners and some quite convincing, if at times evasive, speaking in the TV debates, tomorrow seems likely to herald the beginning of another Conservative government. Unless.
The Tories are, rightly or wrongly, associated inextricably with profiteering; a government who will incentivise the rich to help reform the economy, while leaving the poor to fight over the scraps. Privatising, anti-European, upper-middle class; these are all words many can never shake off when thinking of the Conservatives. I know I can't.
With ballot boxes opening tomorrow, many who were brought up in Labour or Liberal households, where the ghost of Thatcher still looms large, are asking the same question: how can I stop the Tories getting in? The answer is simple; not many people like to adopt it but when even your local MPs are advocating it, you have to give it credence.
The vast majority of seats in the UK are contested between two parties; from these you will see posters, banners, leaflets and the like. If, like me, you live in an area of immense wealth; lots of private schools, weeping willow trees and nannies taking the kids out on their scooters, chances are one of the candidates will be Tory. And the other won't be Labour. In which case, you vote for the other guy.
In conversations building up to the election, I have been amazed by the amount of people who 1) don't know how the elctoral system works and 2) don't know how popular their preferred party is in their own constituency. So for their benefit:
1) You can only vote for your local MP, not the Prime Minister. Whoever wins your local seat adds one seat to their party's total.
2) Whose face is on the majority of the posters? Talk to your MP or your party of choice, are they actively contesting your area?
In my case, the neighbourhood has been dubbed 'Jeremy land', due to the huge following enjoyed by Jeremy Hunt, the man who made the monumental expenses claim of one pence last year. The Lib Dems, however, have enjoyed a surge in popularity over the last month, after the stright-talking Nick Clegg switched on a huge number of previously apathetic voters, people who aren't really into politics but like the idea of an extra 700 quid and seeing someone new have a go. The Lib Dems will run the Tories closest here. My hand is therefore forced.
Tactical voting is not an ideal, but in this case, where many would rather any type of government than a Tory one, it has to be adopted. It could be the key for Labour. Generally speaking, sympathies are stronger between Labour and the Lib Dems, meaning that a red voter ticking yellow or vice versa will not cause too many sleepless nights.
Here, in the depths of pleasantville, even this option is probably futile. A key marginal this certainly isn't. But in many other areas of the country, the opportunity remains for a generation who look past the spin, the headlines and the polls, and believe fundamentally in the values of tolerance, equal opportunity and fairness, to lay their vote on the line and opt against a government they were brought up to fear. It may sting a little, but dammit, it will make our parents proud.
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