The Weird Similarities — and Differences — Between the U.S. and UK Elections

https://pjmedia.com ^ | 11/5/2024 | Chris Queen

[bitt]

Just four months ago, our British cousins voted in an election that changed the course of their country. Today, we go to the polls and will hopefully change the direction of ours.

There are some interesting comparisons between the two elections. Granted, we won’t know the result of the U.S. elections until tonight — or maybe later — but there are some weird similarities and some obvious differences between the two elections.

Let’s start with the timing of these elections. The British elections took place on July 4, eliciting snickers from Americans. I don’t know if Britons ever think about the significance of that day, but it’s funny that they went to the polls the day we were celebrating that we don’t have to vote in their elections.

Of course, American elections have taken place on the first Tuesday in November since 1845, but this year’s Election Day falls on a significant day in the UK: Guy Fawkes Day, which commemorates the foiling of a plot to blow up the houses of Parliament. People throughout the UK remember this event in a holiday they call Bonfire Night, when people light bonfires, enjoy fall treats, and shoot fireworks.

Side note: I hope that the historical cry of “Remember, remember the 5th of November” takes on new meaning as the day we rescued our nation from authoritarian leftism.

Some of the same issues drove voters in both elections. Britons have struggled economically, and immigration is a hot-button issue there as well. Here in the States, immigration and the economy are two of the top issues for voters this year.

[bitt]

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[hanamizu]

Here are a couple of weird facts. The U.K. manages to count nearly all of its votes and the results announced the day of the election. And then there is the presence of ‘scrutineers’ who watch the votes being counted to prevent any ‘funny business’.

And does anyone else remember the MSM claiming that the fireworks in the UK on November 5, 2020 were set off because the Brits were celebrating Trump’s defeat?

[hanamizu]

Oh and one more weird similarity. Ordinary Brits don’t get to vote for the P.M. Only elected members of Parliament. Yet sometimes Brits (and many Americans) seem to be greatly confused by the concept of the Electoral College.

[Pilsner]

The U.K. manages to count nearly all of its votes and the results announced the day of the election.

Keep in mind, in an UK Parliamentary Election, there is only one office on the ballot, Member of Parliament. In the US there may be dozens of races on the ballot.

[hanamizu]

True enough. But my state’s Sec’y of State just announced that full election results should be reported by midnight tonight. Lots of races on the MO ballot.