Tag Archives: migrants

London Mayor 2016 – EU-Citizens Can Vote

glaNon British EU-citizens living in London (EU citizens) can vote in the upcoming elections for London Mayor and for the London Assembly on 5 May 2016. Registration deadline is 18 April 2016. If you are eligible, do not wait for the deadline, register right now.

EU citizens living in London contribute fully to the economic, social and cultural life where ever they live and work in this city. They rent or own, pay for, use and help run public services (transport, health, education, local government, etc.) and they are in growing numbers members of community organisations, trade-unions and political parties.

Letmevote UK is politically neutral. We do however aim to get as many eligible voters, especially under-registered groups such as EU-citizens, to register (by 18 April 2016) and to vote on 5 May 2016. We believe in democratic participation and in using your vote to help shape the community you live in.

Housing, Transport, Social Cohesion, Air Quality, sustainable growth and many more will be issues EU citizens will be considering when casting their vote in May. A key issue for many EU citizens will be candidates’ position on the up-coming EU referendum (23 June), in which EU citizens unfortunately do not have a vote. A vote for Brexit in June would create mid-term uncertainty of EU citizens’ legal status in the UK and further strengthen negativity towards EU citizens in the public discourse across the UK. It is therefore very likely that EU citizens will feel less inclined to vote for candidates supporting Brexit.

If you are not registered to vote yet find details of your local electoral registration office on the websites of the Electoral Commission http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk/ with a simple post code search. Make sure you are on the register to avoid the frustration faced by hundreds of EU citizens who were denied a vote in the UK in the 2014 European Elections.

You can find more information on the mayoral candidates here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_mayoral_election,_2016

Mayoral Candidates (ranked by latest polling) and their party and EU referendum position

Candidate – Party – EU referendum position

  • Sadiq Kahn – Labour – Remain
  • Zac Goldsmith – Conservative – Leave
  • Siân Berry – Green Party – Remain
  • Caroline Pidgeon – Liberal Democrats – Remain
  • Peter Whittle – UKIP – Leave
  • George Galloway – Respect Party – Leave

Even if you think you are registered we still strongly recommend you check with your local electoral registration office. Electoral Registration has moved from registration of the whole household to individual registration. Student accommodations used to register all students in the past. Students now need to register individually.

For all your registration needs visit: http://www.aboutmyvote.co.uk/

HOW YOU CAN HELP

If you know any EU citizens, please encourage them to register and to have their say on the 5th of May.

LONDON ASSEMBLY ELECTION 2016

London also elects London Assembly Members on 5 May 2016.

The Assembly holds the Mayor and Mayoral advisers to account by publicly examining policies and programmes through committee meetings, plenary sessions, site visits and investigations. It consists of 25 members, of which 14 are elected by constituencies, the other 11 represent London overall. There’s a nice little video explaining what the London Assembly is, you can find out more about it and stay on top of ongoing work by checking out the London Assembly website. Again, a good list of 2016 candidates is on Wikipedia.

European Youth Forum for EP2014

The European Youth Forum (YFJ) is the platform of youth organisations in Europe. Representing 99 youth organisations, both National Youth Councils and International Non-Governmental Youth Organisations, we believe youth organisations are the tool through which we empower, encourage, involve, represent, reach out and support young people. The Youth Forum brings together tens of millions of young people from all over Europe, organised in order to represent their common interests. – See more at: http://www.youthforum.org/european-youth-form/#sthash.N4CdWkNy.dpuf

Ahead of the EP2014 Elections the European Youth Forum has launched its LoveYouthFuture Pledges, which show how the EU can love its young people, both now and in the future.

Click the image to get to the LoveYouthFuture Pledges and the campaign website, which holds a wealth of additional information

european youth forum_EP2014

European Network Against Racism (ENAR) EP2014

ENAR is a pan-European anti-racist network that combines advocacy for racial equality and facilitating cooperation among civil society anti-racist actors in Europe. The organisation was set up in 1998 by grassroots activists on a mission to achieve legal changes at European level and make decisive progress towards racial equality in all EU Member States. Since then, ENAR has grown and achieved a great deal.

Parties and politicians using and propagating far-right and xenophobic ideas and programmes are getting stronger. Right-wing populist parties could make significant gains in the next EU elections, with some polls suggesting they could win up to 25% of seats in the next European Parliament.

In this context, we need to ensure that as many political parties and politicians as possible commit to equality and refrain from discriminatory and xenophobic discourses, behaviours and policies. Encouraging people to vote for diversity and equality and against discrimination and xenophobic discourses can also make a difference. Only by actually voting can our concerns be heard and our rights protected.

ENAR are asking candidates and political parties to commit to their top 7 demands to advance equality in the European Union

They also run the #NoHateEP2014 campaign. For this, they have joined forces with ILGA-Europe (European Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association). The purpose of the #NoHateEP2014 campaign is to denounce and monitor hate speech by candidates and encourage EU citizens to vote.

Find all about ENAR’s work ahead of EP2014 here: http://www.enar-eu.org/European-Parliament-Elections