I'm fairly sure it's not what you meant, but for some people postal voting is really their best option,l every year. I'm thinking mostly of old peoples homes, where large proportions of the residents can't get to vote. There have been several cases in this sort of situation where the designated proxy voter for the home has basically just used the votes as his own votes, sometimes even voting without the knowledge of the voter, iyswim. I can quite see the value of routine postal voting for some people.
I meant routine for a large proportion of people. Of course there are reasons for it in some cases, but the more it is used the more it will be abused in the way you describe. It's also more vulnerable to other kinds of fraud than a proper secret ballot.
This article suggests that even postal votes can be abused in this situation.
In general, free availability of postal votes violates our right under the European Convention on Human Rights to a secret ballot, since someone can coerce or bribe you into obtaining a postal vote and then filling it in with them watching.
An awful lot of people here seem to want Chatshow Charlie in power. If my town council is anything to go by, then a LibDem government would see that the NHS budget will be entirely allocated to pensioners and that the military will be ordered to win hearts and minds by planting garish flowers in all the roundabouts of Iraq.
I used to be a card-carrying LD, but I gave them up after (1) Rupert Moss-Eckhart (2) finally deciding that they didn't realise the problems with Europe and (3) their support for software patents in the European parliament.
It's going to be either Green or UKIP for me (both voted against SW patents), and I'm currently leaning towards UKIP.
Yeah, that's the problem with them; a lot of their supporters are in it for the xenophobia rather that objections with the particular structure of Europe.
There's no easy electoral way to say, "I want a Europe with free movement of people and goods, but without the democratic deficits in the Commission and the Council," or "why is the constitutional convention so bloody elitist?" or "stop the agricultural subsidy madness, it's wasting our money AND impoverishing the Third World".
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 01:08 (UTC)Routine Postal Voting
Date: 2004-04-20 01:24 (UTC)Re: Routine Postal Voting
Date: 2004-04-20 02:07 (UTC)Re: Routine Postal Voting
Date: 2004-04-20 07:59 (UTC)I don't think my views on the issue are sufficiently developed to have a definite opinion.
Re: Routine Postal Voting
Date: 2004-04-20 02:26 (UTC)In general, free availability of postal votes violates our right under the European Convention on Human Rights to a secret ballot, since someone can coerce or bribe you into obtaining a postal vote and then filling it in with them watching.
no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 01:54 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 02:56 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 03:55 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 04:38 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 08:00 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 12:54 (UTC)It's going to be either Green or UKIP for me (both voted against SW patents), and I'm currently leaning towards UKIP.
no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 15:23 (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 16:32 (UTC)There's no easy electoral way to say, "I want a Europe with free movement of people and goods, but without the democratic deficits in the Commission and the Council," or "why is the constitutional convention so bloody elitist?" or "stop the agricultural subsidy madness, it's wasting our money AND impoverishing the Third World".
no subject
Date: 2004-04-20 11:00 (UTC)