It’s election day. It might feel like there’s nothing else you can do other than cast your vote. But until the polls close at 10pm, there are still lots of things you can do to help defeat the Tories.
Here are four suggestions:
1) Call everyone you know
Call your friends. Call your family. Text, tweet, Snapchat, Instagram, carrier pigeon, whatever your method of choice. Communicate, remind and cajole. Persuade them to make the effort. And remind them of what Jeremy Corbyn is offering them. Remind them this is the opportunity of a lifetime. And if that doesn’t do it, tell them they could get a free beer.
2) Help people get to the polling station
Offer people lifts. See if and how you can help them. Go with people if they’re nervous or anxious about going to a polling station. Or if they’re first-time voters and worried because they’re not sure what to do. Get involved with a local group and knock on doors. Make sure that elderly aunt or grandfather who wants to protect their house from the dementia tax can get to the polling station.
Let people know how to find out where their nearest polling station is. Remind them that, as long as they’re registered, they don’t need their polling card to vote.
3) Share posts on social media
Take and share selfies outside the polling station (NOT INSIDE, as this is illegal). But also share articles, videos, memes. Remind people what the Conservative Party has done to this country. Tell people about our NHS, about the hospitals that are being closed and the services that are being sold off to the highest bidder. Tell people about our schools that are suffering from so many cuts that teachers are writing begging letters to parents. Remind them that our public sector workers are being forced to use food banks.
And show them the alternative that Corbyn is offering and the clear plan he is proposing.
4) Go and vote
Use your vote. Go on, do it. Don’t think ‘I’ll do it later’. Don’t be put off because it’s raining outside. Polling stations are open from 7am until 10pm. And vote for whoever and whatever your conscience tells you. In some places, this will be easy. In others, it may mean holding your nose and voting Lib Dem. Look at the latest YouGov polling data for your area. And if in doubt, go with your heart.
Corbyn has set out the first five things he’ll do if he becomes Prime Minister. And they’re bloody brilliant. We have the opportunity to make history today. It is that significant. And you can be a part of it. In the words of one of Corbyn’s supporters:
Featured image author’s own