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Author: David Herdson

The government is right to junk Supplementary Vote – it’s the worst of all worlds

The government is right to junk Supplementary Vote – it’s the worst of all worlds

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It’s the only system that genuinely makes valid votes worthless The only exciting thing about the London mayoral election result this year is likely to be whether Sadiq Khan wins on the first vote or is forced into second preferences. He will not be close by Shaun Bailey or any of the many other candidates but may miss out on the 50% share needed to secure a first-preference win. That he might need a second round at all is because…

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AOC-2024? Yes, the Democrats really could go from their oldest nominee to their youngest

AOC-2024? Yes, the Democrats really could go from their oldest nominee to their youngest

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The 2010s should tell us that radicalism and inexperience is no bar Joe Biden is 5/2 against to be the Democrats’ nominee for president in 2024. There has surely never been such long odds for a first-term elected president. Frankly, I think that’s huge value despite his age. Political leaders do not give up lightly and only got where they are because of tenacity and a considerable belief in themselves. But let’s suppose that he doesn’t stand (not least because…

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The Covid race: vaccination vs lockdown easing. It’s not over yet

The Covid race: vaccination vs lockdown easing. It’s not over yet

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Easing restrictions remains a gamble for all the UK governments You might think that things are finally going well in the UK in the fight against Covid-19. And, after a pretty awful 2020, so they are. Close to 25m vaccine doses have already been administered – more, proportionally than almost any other country on Earth; weekly case numbers are down by more than 90% from the peak, the weekly death toll is down by more than 85%, hospital admissions by…

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Where’s the strapline, Rishi?

Where’s the strapline, Rishi?

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The problem with Austerity II is that we’re not all in it together Rishi Sunak set out a reasonably coherent economic strategy for the rest of the parliament at his Budget this week. Not that you’d know, because it was buried well within the speech and neither media nor politicians have sought to engage on that level. This is a mistake from the government but is typical of its lack of strategic thinking and inability or unwillingness to develop an…

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Labour dis-United?

Labour dis-United?

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Does Liverpool risk triggering a breach between Labour and its biggest affiliate? Of all the elections being contested on May 6, one of the easiest to call should have been the Liverpool mayoral race. On both previous occasions, Labour won on first preferences with a lead of at least 30%. Labour holds all four parliamentary seats with majorities of at least 27,000 or 60%. It is not quite one-party territory – a fifth of the council seats are held by…

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Command syndrome: Brexit and Covid have defined Johnson’s leadership style

Command syndrome: Brexit and Covid have defined Johnson’s leadership style

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  Settling in – not even reverting – to being a normal PM will be tough, maybe impossible Boris Johnson is an oddity of a prime minister in many ways. For someone with such an impeccable establishment background, there’s a distinct air of the outsider to him. Maybe its that while he may be amusing and entertaining to many, he’s not especially clubbable; to be at the centre of attention, he has to be to some extent apart; he always…

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Elections 2021: who wants what, who’ll get it, and what then?

Elections 2021: who wants what, who’ll get it, and what then?

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For a mid-term, the govt is doing very well. That could spell a tricky summer for Starmer Elections are back on the menu. Lots of them. After the cancelled local election round last year, every person in Britain will have at least one vote to cast in May, many people will have several. That alone has the potential to dramatically shift the politics of the country but perhaps all the more so after a year in which the executive has…

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A fractured SNP will struggle to campaign at full-throttle

A fractured SNP will struggle to campaign at full-throttle

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The Salmond fall-out, trans rights and factionalism will be hindrances in the campaign for independence If you lose your head, it’s all over. Not quite what one Scot (who was at the time an Egyptian-born Spaniard), said to another (though that one was American), but it might as well have been. Wise words to an immortal; wiser still to a politician – and ones that Scottish nationalists would do well to reflect on. The SNP has dominated Scottish politics for…

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