How does tactical voting work?
If there is a Tory MP or councillor in your area, the best way to get them out is for as many people as possible to vote for the most likely opposition party to be able to beat them.
In many places the numbers needed to flip a Tory held seat are small.
So tell a friend, and share this website in your local community!
Tactical voting sucks!
Yes, we agree!
Ideally our system of elections would be fairer, counting all votes equally, measuring votes proportionally.
Which is why we're supporters of Proportional Representation, which would almost remove the need for voting tactically.
Not only would it make government more representative, people voting with their ideals, goals, and their hearts... it would also make it much harder to game our elections.
We're members of the Make Votes Matter Alliance, along with a huge number of other organisations.
Who runs this website?
This is a project by Forward Democracy, which was started in 2023 and gave tactical voting advice for the May 2023 local elections.
Forward Democracy also run The Movement Forward and Swap My Vote.
We're a group of so-far unpaid volunteers (with the exception of modest crowdfunding) who have been working on democracy projects since at least 2015. Individually much longer.
We are not affiliated with any political party, or financed by them.
Do you favour one party over another?
No, we recommend whichever progressive party we believe is most likely to beat the Tories in each area.
Find out more about our Methodology and Data.
Why aren't you recommending any party in my constituency?
We aim to make tactical voting recommendations in every seat where a Tory could win.
In some seats, the tactical vote isn't clear yet - we will aim to make a recommendation as soon as possible, but in some cases will need to wait until close to polling day.
In seats where the Tory party can't win, we encourage people to vote with their hearts.
We also don't make recommendations in Northern Ireland, or in the Speakers seat (Chorley).
Find out more about our Methodology and Data.
Why don't you make recommendations in Northern Ireland?
The main political parties who stand in the rest of the UK - including the Tory party - don't stand candidates in Northern Ireland.
Because of this, we've decided not to make any recommendations in Northern Ireland.
Why aren't you making a recommendation in Chorley?
The current MP for Chorley is Lindsay Hoyle, who is currently the Speaker of the House of Commons.
By convention, most major political parties - including the Tory party - do not stand candidates against the Speaker.
This convention means voters in the Speakers seat typically do not get much choice of who to vote for, and the Speaker usually comfortably wins elections.
The Speaker also does not take part in debates or votes in Parliament, meaning voters in the Speakers seat do not have a voice in parliament.
We believe in Proportional Representation, which would mean all voters will have representation in parliament.
How can I support this project?
This platform was first built for local elections in 2023, and we've updated it to work for general elections too.
We aim to continue the development of this platform and support campaigns to help people show up and own their future!
You can donate to our Crowdfunder, or get in touch to talk about larger or ongoing support.