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Lincoln is a marginal seat and students can tip the scale if they chose to vote in Lincoln in 2015, writes Kamran Hussain
2015 General Election fever has not quite kicked in yet, but you can expect it to get a grip of the entire nation and even more so here in Lincoln in just a few months time.
The rhetoric phrase “every vote counts” is often bandied around election time by politicians. However, in Lincoln it actually does.
Lincoln is often described as a bellwether seat as the city has elected an MP from the main governing party at Westminster since 1947.
The Lincoln constituency is the 18th most marginal seat in the UK with Conservative MP, Karl McCartney winning by just 1,058 votes in the 2010 General Election (5.9% swing).
Lincoln is the oldest constituency in the UK with its parliamentary boundaries dating back to 1265.
Labour has indentified Lincoln as one of its key seats in the East Midlands. The party regained control of the city council in 2011 and has increased its majority in local elections ever since.
Students in Lincoln have the potential to influence the outcome of the election next May in 2015 if they choose to vote in Lincoln.
Students are able to register to vote at home and at their term-time address. The university term runs beyond polling day on May 7 so students can vote here in the Lincoln constituency as their votes are more likely to make a difference if their home constituency is not a marginal seat.
Labour’s Parliamentary Candidate for Lincoln, Lucy Rigby believes it will be a close contest.
She said: “Lincoln is one of the closest fought constituencies in the country and just a few hundred votes will decide the result here. Because of the way our electoral system works, this means every single vote in Lincoln really counts, whereas in ‘safe’ seats your vote can be less likely to affect the outcome.”
Ms Rigby added: “I’d always encourage people to vote in elections and there are very good reasons for doing that here in Lincoln rather than elsewhere.”
However, as seen in recent by-elections UKIP have made huge strides and they will no doubt play their part in Lincoln in May 2015.
Students have a great opportunity to play their part in the democratic system electing who they believe will the best person to represent the Lincoln constituency.
It is easy to register to vote or to amend your details, just follow the link: https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
The Linc has been in touch with Karl McCartney MP for a comment, who has not responded.