Theresa May has called a General Election for just two years and one month after the last one in which The Conservative Party (also known as The Tories) won a slender majority, the end of Blairism came with the expected whimper and the LibDems were all but wiped out in Parliament. Now, two years on, mired in a chaotic series of Brexit negotiations, the PM has done what she said she would never do – call an early election.

Much about this election feels pivotal. While I try to avoid talking politics on my blog to prevent it interfering with my professional content, when I do write about politics, I feel I should always try to do something different such as writing about the language of political stock phrases. But so much has been written about this election already.

• I could write about how badly both sides in the EU referendum performed, but others have already done that
• I could write about my shock at the country – largely egged on by the right-wing media – voted itself out of the largest single trading bloc in the world, but others are already doing that
• I could write about how Theresa May appears out of her depth, but others are already doing that
• I could also express my exasperation that her popularity only seems to improve no matter how badly she comes across or how badly she performs, but others are already doing that (no better explained than in this satirical article with the title New Tory Slogan ‘We’re Going to F**cking Kill You All’ Not Putting People Off)
• I could write about how unelectable Jeremy Corbyn appears to others, but others are already doing that
• I could list Jeremy Corbyn’s genuine faults and not the contrived media-generated flaws and character assassination that they desperately want us to see as critical flaws, but others are already doing that
• I could write how the Lib-Dems could take a lot of seats back after the thrashing they received in 2015, but others are already doing that
• I could write about how nobody will vote Green despite the perception that Caroline Lucas is a superb MP both inside and outside her constituency and how broadly they appeal to disaffected Labour Party voters and young people, but others are already doing that
• I could write how I no longer feel we are a democracy – but at the mercy of foreign-owned and non-dom powerful right-wing media, but others are already doing that
• I could write about how post-truth politics has led to Theresa May refusing to face the press or members of the public makes her appear as a dictator in a banana republic, but others are already doing that
• I could write how results of this election seem almost inevitable, but others are already doing that
• I could write about my personal frustrations of the political process of the last two and a bit years, but that’s not really what I want to do on this blog

How Do We Do Something Different This Time?

How do you write about an election when you have such powerful views but your own rules about what you will and will not write on your blog (in the name of professional conduct) urge you to tread with caution in ways you do not on your personal social media sites? Do you offer an opinion, just one in a sea of many others, lost in the general pre-election analysis? At this stage, I feel I will just be regurgitating my political commentators of choice and my own voice will be lost in a sea of a million more all screaming to be heard.

Do I throw insults at the parties I won’t vote for and look at my own choice through rose-coloured spectacles? That is never a good idea no matter which way you intend to vote. Theresa May is not perfect. Jeremy Corbyn is not perfect. Tim Farron is not perfect. Neither is Nicola Sturgeon (SNP), Caroline Lucas & Jonathan Bartley (Green co-leaders) or Paul Nuttall (UKIP).

No, I think we should simply point out just how important this election is. This election will affect us all, but most of all the youngest generations who are going to have to live with the choices we make in June.

We are at a Crossroads

No matter which way we vote, it’s important to remember that we’re voting on the future of the country. We have a difficult decision to make. No one person or party has the mandate to change the country for the benefit of the few. That is why we are at such a critical time here and now. If more of the same is what you want then so be it. Yet it is equally important to remember that more of the same as it stands now is a vote for change in its own way – and perhaps not all will be for the better. The country I live in will be very different five years from now no matter what happens.

I only hope it is for the better, for the many, in the name of the greater good. I do feel that more people at this election will vote tactically and the polls are not as clear cut as they might now seem. I will not be voting for the party of which I am a member. That might seem disloyal, but I have very good reason for doing so.

No matter how you vote in June, think carefully but make sure you do vote. You’ll most likely never vote in such an important General Election

Some Resources for You To Consider

I Side With – is a questionnaire that helps you decide who you should vote for. This is especially useful if you are a first-time voter

Some advice on How to Vote Tactically in your area

Have you considered a Vote Swap? This is one of many sites that allow you to maximise your vote by “swapping” with somebody else in another area. For example, you are a LibDem live in a seat largely contested between Labour and Tory. Your vote is wasted. With Vote Swapping it need not be if you can find somebody willing to vote LibDem in an area contested between them and another party while you vote for their party of choice on their behalf.