Voter suppression: UK Voter ID

[Spraggons Den]

If you are under 30 you get 3 votes
If you are over 30 but not retired (65) you get 2 votes
If you are retired (over 65) you get 1 vote

But wouldn’t you need ID to prove which of the three age brackets you are in?

FWIW, I think your scheme has merit but the qualifying ages need some fettling. How about 1 vote for the coffin dodgers, 2 votes for folk over 40 but below pension qualification age, 3 votes for the under 40s, 4 votes for school-age children, 5 votes for the under fives, 6 votes for registered foetus and finally 7 votes for sperm/eggs.

 

[Marchbanks]

I have thought for some time how to remove the age bias in voting. As a generalisation, younger people are less likely to vote even though they have the most vested interest in doing so; but generally political parties are not interested in the younger vote as it is not potent enough.

The younger generation have more vested interest in long term solutions and policies from our government than older people; in general according to YouGuv; over-65s were more than twice as likely as under-25s to have voted to Leave the European Union. In essence those with less time on planet earth get to tell those with more time, how they will live their lives.

My solution - Give the younger generation more votes. Why should older people with less time to live in 'the system' have the same say as to how it works?

If you are under 30 you get 3 votes
If you are over 30 but not retired (65) you get 2 votes
If you are retired (over 65) you get 1 vote

It would never be adopted. However, it would encourage politicians to engage with the younger audience and take seriously their concerns regarding economic policy and environmental issues and also to start planning much longer term than the current system; where long term planning doesn't happen due to the short term nature of a governing party.
Just in case you are wondering - I would get 2 votes
Jay

I’m up for this. Frankly you could give me 0 votes for all I care, it makes no difference in my constituency. Of course, in return I’d expect to pay no income tax. The amount I pay has soared since I became an OAP. (That happens at 66, BTW, not 65. At present. It might be more when you get there.)

 

[droodzilla]

I would like 20 million votes please (old-school trade union style).

 

[Ponty]

I have thought for some time how to remove the age bias in voting. As a generalisation, younger people are less likely to vote even though they have the most vested interest in doing so; but generally political parties are not interested in the younger vote as it is not potent enough.

The younger generation have more vested interest in long term solutions and policies from our government than older people; in general according to YouGuv; over-65s were more than twice as likely as under-25s to have voted to Leave the European Union. In essence those with less time on planet earth get to tell those with more time, how they will live their lives.

My solution - Give the younger generation more votes. Why should older people with less time to live in 'the system' have the same say as to how it works?

If you are under 30 you get 3 votes
If you are over 30 but not retired (65) you get 2 votes
If you are retired (over 65) you get 1 vote

It would never be adopted. However, it would encourage politicians to engage with the younger audience and take seriously their concerns regarding economic policy and environmental issues and also to start planning much longer term than the current system; where long term planning doesn't happen due to the short term nature of a governing party.
Just in case you are wondering - I would get 2 votes
Jay

Interesting concept. An alternative could be votes in accordance with tax paid. Those who make the contributions decide how it’s spent. The rich, who we are continually told (here anyway) evade, avoid, or pay their tax overseas would therefore have little say.

 

[droodzilla]

Saying the quiet part out loud.

 

[MikeMA]

It would be a lot simpler if we all just had National ID cards. I’m surprised no-one’s thought of that.

I used to advocate people having their NI number barcoded and tattooed across their foreheads at birth, but things have moved on so I guess it would be a QR code now, or be chipped like a dog? What's not to like?

 

[NeilR]

Interesting concept. An alternative could be votes in accordance with tax paid. Those who make the contributions decide how it’s spent. The rich, who we are continually told (here anyway) evade, avoid, or pay their tax overseas would therefore have little say.

that is a really, really bad idea. Think about the implications for a while and get back to us.

 

[Tony L]

“The final figures are in: just 63,279 people met last night's 5pm deadline to apply for new Voter ID. That's a tiny 3% of the 2 MILLION people who lack the right ID to vote under the Govt's new rules.”

Paul Waugh (Twitter).

The Conservative party’s gerrymandering has worked. They have successfully denied the vote from nearly two million people.

 

[matt j]

“The final figures are in: just 63,279 people met last night's 5pm deadline to apply for new Voter ID. That's a tiny 3% of the 2 MILLION people who lack the right ID to vote under the Govt's new rules.”

Paul Waugh (Twitter).

The Conservative party’s gerrymandering has worked. They have successfully denied the vote from nearly two million people.

Surely if those 2 million people were determined to vote anyway they'd have got an ID? To me that reads like out of 2 million folk only 65k of them can be arsed to vote.

 

[kensalriser]

Surely if those 2 million people were determined to vote anyway they'd have got an ID? To me that reads like out of 2 million folk only 65k of them can be arsed to vote.

You're assuming they all knew and were capable of acting in the time available.

 

[matt j]

You're assuming they all knew and were capable of acting in the time available.

I mean, you'd have to be under a rock not to have heard by now, especially if you're a keen voter and follower of politics. Granted I'll allow some slack for those not able to act in time, but how many of 2 million is that? not 1.9 million I don't think.

 

[mercalia]

I mean, you'd have to be under a rock not to have heard by now, especially if you're a keen voter and follower of politics. Granted I'll allow some slack for those not able to act in time, but how many of 2 million is that? not 1.9 million I don't think.

I got a pamphlet from my local council through the letter box

 

[Nero]

I feel sorry for the polling station staff when people rock up and hear about the photo ID requirement for the first time. It will happen.

 

[Tony L]

I got a pamphlet from my local council through the letter box

Very easy just to assume it is junk mail. So much spam falls on the doormat these days. Likewise the low-profile posters on tram stops etc and small print on the back of the polling card. All very easy to miss, by design. We’ll obviously know far more if the vote is lower than expected and there are lots of reports of folk being turned away. Voter suppression tends to be targeted to drop a few points in marginal seats, i.e. it doesn’t need to stop too many people voting to achieve the aim of the corrupt anti-democratic party implementing it. This gerrymandering has been tried and tested in America forever. The Tories are just copying their Republican mentors.

 

[gintonic]

I feel sorry for the people having to queue as checking photos IDs is going to take time.

So glad we postal vote

 

[gintonic]

Very easy just to assume it is junk mail.

our pamphlet was very obviously about photo IDs and the election.

So much spam falls on the doormat these days

dunno about you, but hardly any here - one item per week if that...and we haven't opted out of anything.

 

[kensalriser]

So good to see that the government's voter suppression scheme has support. No wonder Tories keep on Torying.

 

[Tony L]

dunno about you, but hardly any here - one item per week if that...and we haven't opted out of anything.

Loads here, often delivered in clumps of several at once; local food & business, property, loan sharks, insulation, taxies, washing services, charities etc etc. Most delivered at random, some via the Royal Mail. I tend just to pick them up and drop them in the recycling bag with very little attention. I’m sure this will all have been analysed as I imagine a lot of ‘red wall’ marginal seats are very similar to mine (which is very safe Labour). There is nothing haphazard about Tory criminality, they know *exactly* what they are doing. All calculated, all tested by the Republicans in similarly poor and multi-ethnic US areas.

 

[Seanm]

No pamphlet here, haven’t seen any billboards, social media ads, don’t watch much tv but haven’t seen anything or heard about any campaign. It hasn’t really been publicised. Still think this is less significant than the fact that Labour are simply not giving anyone, and young people in particular, any reason to register. Young people would be informing each other if they saw any point to it, as they did in 2017 and 2019.

 

[Ponty]

Only tory and Libdem stuff here, delivered personally by the candidates. Both tossers IMHO. Labour aren’t even bothering. Waste of time with me, not voting.