Vote for people not the political party

IT’S election time again and politicians are feeling the unmerciful wrath while they try their best to campaign for not just one election, but two.

It also means I’m voting for the first time… Yay!

I am eager to vote because I believe we should be grateful in this country our citizens over the age of 18 are allowed to vote and we should use this opportunity to show politicians how we feel.

But I get it, we in Ireland vote for a party not the person.

Take an example — die hard party people refuse to vote for, well, anyone, but their party because they feel it’s the best one and so on. However, be realistic, did your representative do much for you?

The polls also show Labour could potentially crash.

However, think of why they’re crashing. It’s because the people who supported them have obviously little faith in the party so they take it on the people running for election.

I disagree with this.

You might have a very capable Labour person in your constituency, but because you might feel their party is rubbish, you take it out on them. That’s very stupid.

Think back to our last few parties in government.

Voters are so fickle it’s hilarious, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Labour, Greens, Independents, whoever — they will come out prior to an election saying they’ll do this and that and they’ll move mountains for you.

But for the poor person banging on the door, getting all the abuse, it won’t really save them.

Ireland is like a block of cheese divided into sections.

You’ve got all the party followers diehards taking up a few chunks, then a few more scattered unsure and a few who’d rant and moan but wouldn’t put pen to paper to show their opinions.

Dear readers, in this next election vote for the person you want to vote for, not the party.

If you are a diehard Fianna Fáil person but the Labour campaigner did more for you than the Fianna Fáil person, give Labour your number one.

If you’re too caught up still in Michael Collins, de Valera and so on, don’t bother, Ireland isn’t in the state for that — vote who you think is the best candidate.

In the words of American novelist Ray Bradbury ‘I don’t like either political party. One should not belong to them — one should be an individual, standing in the middle. Anyone that belongs to a party stops thinking’.