MAKING TIME TO VOTE

Making time to vote
by Kirstie Summers
19th May 2017

To vote in the General Election coming up on June 8th 2017, you need to be registered before 11.59pm on Monday May 22nd. In 2015 General Election, only 66% of women voted. It is as crucial now as it ever has been that women stand up for their rights and use their votes to fight for their collective voice to be heard in political debate. For all the advances this country has made for gender equality, women are consistently hit disproportionately hard by cuts and austerity measures that are meant to be applied equally across society. In the UK’s current political climate, it is essential that women ensure that they are given a voice in government to stand up for their rights.

The most effective way to shake up the status quo is to use your vote. If 100% of women voted, all of a sudden every politician would care about women’s issues. As long as women are not voting, politicians are not motivated to listen to the collective voice of women in the UK and will continue to serve their own interests as long as they can get away with it.

This General Election, whoever you choose to vote for, is an opportunity to force the government to recognise the societal problems that women face and to direct their attention towards making the national community safer and fairer for women.

You have until June 8th to decide who you would like to vote for. You do not have to decide whose politics you most agree with before you register to vote. But you only have a few days left to register before you no longer have the opportunity.

It only takes a few minutes online via this website.

Links to party manifestos can be found below:
Labour: http://www.labour.org.uk/index.php/manifesto2017
Conservatives: https://www.conservatives.com/manifesto
Liberal Democrats: http://www.libdems.org.uk/manifesto
Green Party: https://www.greenparty.org.uk/green-party-manifesto.html
Women’s Equality Party: www.womensequality.org.uk/manifesto