The second paragraph of this is a condensed version of my previous blog post, Why I don’t vote. The rest is, I think, worth reading!

Dear Mr. Smith,

I’m taking the 30 minutes that it would have taken me to vote to tell you why I’m not going to vote, and to tell you what I’m going to do to prove the hypocrisy of those who berate me for my decision before, having ticked their boxes and delivered their ballots, doing nothing for any political movement until the next election comes around.

My vote is worthless. My one solitary check won’t tip any balances. Nothing will change, for better or worse, when I cast my vote. Yes, if everybody had this attitude, the effect would be significant - but I’m not most people; I’m one person. I won’t spoil my ballot, firstly because my refusal to vote isn’t a matter of protest and secondly because my vote of no confidence in the system would be as insignificant as my vote for any party. And, despite the trite retort of some that, if I don’t vote, I have no right to complain, whoever becomes MP for my constituency will still be paid by me to represent me - regardless of whether I voted for them, voted against them or didn’t vote at all.

More importantly, what really upsets me is that the media and the government - seemingly genuinely believing themselves - treat our vote as if it is the greatest and most important, and indeed only, tool we have to make ourselves heard. I can (and have, and will continue to) have far more political impact by writing to my MP, petitioning, protesting, donating and even simply debating with my peers than I could ever have with my futile vote - but we are coaxed into believing that our ballot papers give us some semblance of power, thus deterring us from becoming politically active in meaningful, tangible, worthwhile ways, and into vilifying those who choose not to vote, even if they are far more active in other ways.

This year, I’m going to write to my MP once a month, every month, to tell them what I think about the current issues, to ask questions, to challenge and of course also to congratulate. On top of this I will continue to petition, protest, donate and debate. I will show that the choice not to vote is only one of apathy when coupled with a choice not to be active in any other ways - and that my decision to forgo this activity is the most insignificant political decision I will ever make.

So, you can see, the time that I would have otherwise spent voting has been spent formulating a plan on how, for the next year, I can have significantly more influence, involvement in and impact on local and national politics than anyone who drops their political inspiration at the voting booth. You’ve probably realised by now that this open letter is more for the benefit of my critics than yourself, although it will at least give you some advance notice that, if you continue to be my representative, I’ll be communicating with you often for the next year.

I’m looking forward to it!

Thanks,
Kinders Kinley
Oxford

Some people seem to mistake my attitude to voting as activism in itself. It’s not. It’s just timesaving. I’m not trying to persuade anybody not to vote, any more than I’m trying to persuade them not to spin around in a circle balancing jelly on their heads. Knock yourself out!

Edit: Read Mr. Smith’s reply.

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