A post I know about politics! I have grown quite weary the last few weeks of TV debates from all the parties. I'm not sure when this American style of debate started but I dislike it. I'd sooner have potential MP's travelling around the country and meeting people, not staged, selected members of the public with pre approved questions.
I've not had one candidate knock my door! Has anyone had a visit? I've had lots of post thou with vote for me etc etc.
When I voted the polling station seemed quite empty unlike other countries where some people queue for hours.
Do you think we will have to suffer a second election or a minority government?
Feelings anyone?

Re the debates............ I am Welsh and live in Suffolk.
I cannot for the life of me see WHY the SNP and Plaid Cymru were included in all the debates. They are both REGIONAL parties (apart from having their own devolved parliaments) and the large percentage of UK population cannot vote for them - even if they wished to.

I have a postal vote.  Just read in local paper that there was an error on the paperwork of 2000 that were sent out.  So that probably means one party or more will lose votes.

The postal vote always seems to have a problem! It's amazing we still use a pencil to x with and not a bar code!  May help with the counting and a voice saying unexpected my in the commons area!

It's crazy I know but I think everyone had to be included save for the NO, ED, All the independent parties I so miss Lord Such and Raving Lunatics party.

> I've not had one candidate knock my door! Has anyone had a visit? I've had lots of post thou with vote for me etc etc

I haven't either, and if they can't knock on my door, are they doing enough?  I don't think so.  At one point, when I was sick to death of trying to work out who was worthy of my vote, I did decide that anyone who knocked on my door could have my vote.  Only the postman knocked. 

Election embargo in this household - elderly mum's postal vote failed to appear, so we went to polling station armed with her ID... apparently she couldn't vote because she didn't fill in a form 2 YEARS AGO and of course nobody has followed that up, plus she has lapsed her party membership as she is now 81 and not really able to participate... if she had kept that up they'd have noticed and helped her back on the electoral roll :(

There is gossip here that our local council has really messed up and there might be another election in a few months time, a lot of people ON the roll who couldn't vote today... disgusting.

Jean I agree with you and waited for my first "knock" previous years always had a few parties call. If you cannot get out and mix with Mrs/Mr/Miss/Ms etc on their doorstep have you lost that personal touch? Now it's let's stuff leaflets in letter boxes when they cannot see us style of attack! As for exit polls I've never been asked once!

The only parties I saw bearing in mind I could have been out when or if others came round was the Greens and Lib Dems....

Now we are playing the Who will resign first game!? Ed? Nick? Nigel?  I'm more concerned with the SNP Sturgeon and Co bulldozing everything and anything down in Parliament, for me they have shown a nasty, spiteful,  anti - tory side. Inviting at times, a hostile envoirament towards Parliament/The Union of UK and directly at Cameron. Will we have another referendum for Scotland breaking away? Should Scottish MP's  have a direct say in English laws/acts that only affect England and Wales? Would English MP's in the Scottish Parliament have a direct say too? Or even dare to presume they could intervene in laws/acts that affect Scotland only?
Crazy times.
Farage lost his seat just

So am I (SNP) - and they make me 'laugh' in that during the referendum, they wanted NOTHING to do with Westminster and yet with the lead-up to the Election, they were gagging to get into Westminster.   I suppose it's good for Scotland, and may be an answer in terms of Scotland being heard, without splitting up the United Kingdom.

All I can say overall is now we get the sour grapes.   The people have spoken and obviously very few were happy to return to the days of feel-good at the risk of bankrupting the country.   I don't like Cameron, but what's the alternative.   I'm just happy our local Liberal MP got booted out.   He was all for taking the qudos for things that went right in coelition, but those things that were wrong - all the fault of the Tories!   That lost him my vote.

As for calling at the door - the only one I saw in our area was said Lib Deb MP, as we were driving out!   We have a 'no cold calls' notice at the door, so hopefully they didn't 'call', and disturb my hounds.

How this all pans out over the next years, will be interesting, to say the least.

They are all going yet Farage said he would stand again for leadership in sept, sorry standing down to me means gone for good!

Whilst I think it's probably better not to discuss politics on CD, I can't help saying I'd take Nicola Sturgeon over all the public schoolboy Tories any day. Just wish I could have voted for her!!

Usually it does mean stand down permanently! Nicola yes a new breath of fresh air & ideas different than guys in the suits! She does remind me of Maggie .Maybe the other three parties all go for female leaders now? For me I think no one should have resigned yet, a step back and hash it out over a few weeks then make a change if needed.
Yes aware different to discuss politics on CD I did pop it on other non dog related topic. Always good to get a cross section of views on different topics.