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| David Cameron and John Reid supporting "NOtoAV" |
The “No to AV” campaign was
political campaign in the United Kingdom that was launched back in 2011. The
Conservative Party wanted the public to vote against the proposed Alternate
Vote. Initially, this was not a very controversial issue. It seemed as though
everyone disagreed with an Alternative Vote; even the media was supportive of
the “No to AV” plan, and reported favorably on the bipartisan efforts. Every
news outlet ran stories detailing the collaboration and cooperation that
existed across party lines. Despite the appearance of unity, there were some
who wanted the Alternative Vote passed. Even though over 200 Labour Party
members were in alignment with the Conservative Party’s view, the leader of the
Labour party, Ed Miliband, wanted the Alternative Vote to pass. Problems arose
due to how the “No to AV” campaign was conveyed to the public. Those who supported “No to AV” devised a strategy
to convince the voters that the Alternative Vote was a bad idea. They circulated
information that stated the Alternative Vote would be an expensive change and “deny
equipment for troops and sick babies incubators” (Cave and Rowell). This was
not the case. Experts from both parties and an independent organization stated
that the additional cost associated with the new method was nowhere near the
estimations. Arguments escalated until the cabinet minister finally stepped in.
He threatened legal action against the Conservatives who were involved in
making this exaggerated claim. In the end, the new alternative voting method
was voted against almost two to one.
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| Ads made to convince people to vote no against the alternative voting system. Showed how "expensive" this would be. |
It is important to note two things
in regards to the controversy brought up by the “No to AV” campaign. Firstly it
is important to acknowledge the large role of political parties in the UK
government. Back in the mid 1800s after the first reform act, the attention
began to shift from the candidates themselves to political parties. According
to Gary Cox, party cohesiveness is essential to get anything passed
legislatively. The way the political parties are set up, it is imperative for
them to stand together on important issues. Constituents vote for a party as a
whole instead of specific individuals. It reached a point over the years where
people vote for a party because they believe that that party will choose the
legislation that is most favorable to them. This in turns requires a hierarchy
in the parties. There are leaders for a reason: to ensure that the majority of
the party all votes the same and that they stay in line with their party goals.
The Labour party failed on terms of
this party cohesiveness. The fact that over 200 of them didn’t want the reform
to pass while their party leader was in favor of it shows just how un-unified the
party was. If the party would have been more unified and shown more party
unison, maybe this reform could have been passed. Voters were convinced to vote
no by fabricated numbers. The Conservatives were quick to make the costs the
main topic, and Labour was never able to redirect the narrative. This could
have been a bigger fight if the Labour party had come out with the real numbers
and stood together as a unified party. The alternative vote campaign was
promoted by organizations that were outside the government realm. The fact that
incorrect numbers were released showed that the media and other interest groups
had more power over the outcome than the parties themselves. I believe this, in
large measure, is due to the fact that the Labour party was very divided in
their stance on the issue. The English people look to their parties to lead the
way on where they stand on certain issues. Parties have such an enormous say in
the political world that according to Cox’s definition of who controls the
outcomes, the Labour let their people down on this issue.
References:
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/mar/12/lobbying-10-ways-corprations-influence-government
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2011/may/02/no-to-av-vote-tory-party-funding
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/feb/25/no-to-alternative-vote-baby-ad
Cox, Gary. The Efficient Secret. 1987. Print.
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