Let's Have Alphabet Lottery for Elections ; Where Your Name Goes On the Ballot Paper Could Be a Key Factor in the Forthcoming Elections, Argues Chris Game, Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Local Government Studies at the University of Birmingham. He Suggests a Way Round It

Summary

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Easter must have been difficult for our local politicians this year -a bit harder than usual to evade all those domestic and garden chores that clamour for springtime attention.

Normally election business would take precedence, with nominations to be filed, agents appointed, publicity prepared, postal votes organised, supporters recruited. This year, though, the Government has postponed local council elections from early May until June 10, to coincide with those for the European Parliament.

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Let's Have Alphabet Lottery for Elections ; Where Your Name Goes On the Ballot Paper Could Be a Key Factor in the Forthcoming Elections, Argues Chris Game, Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Local Government Studies at the University of Birmingham. He Suggests a Way Round It

The theory is that we may be slightly more inclined to vote in a double election than in two separate ones: we shall see.

Personally, I reckon a better way of publicising the elections, as well as making them fairer, would be to open the campaign, as in California, with an alphabet lottery to determine candidates' positions on the ballot paper.

It's a good idea anyway, but it would ...

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