Hated the Lib Dems for going into coalition with the Tories. Friends bought me a membership as a joke. 15 years on I've been a Lib Dem councillor for years. Petrified someone will discover my origin story.
@fesshole The reverse Liz Truss.
@fesshole You have to pay to be a member of a political party in the UK?!
@Eetschrijver Interesting. @fesshole
Oct 23, 2026, 7:40 PM
@MFennVT
You only need to be registered to vote in the electoral register to vote in a general election. And have some kind of ID with you in these degenerate days. Registered on the electoral register is unrelated to party membership.
If you're not paying for membership, where's the commitment? Also can you be a member of multiple parties? In UK usually not.
Oct 23, 2026, 8:05 PMNo, not at all. Voting is anonymous and doesn't require you to be a party member or pay any fees. You just have to be on the electoral register (for which one family member needs to declare who's living at your address every few years), and that gives you the right to vote in person. You need photo ID these days, but most people have something suitable and, if not, you can get it free of charge.
There's a bit more bureaucracy to go through if you want a postal vote, but it's not onerous and no one tries to stop you from voting, and you don't pay for the stamp.
Oct 23, 2026, 8:11 PMPleasure! Oh, I meant to add: party membership is low compared to the size of the electorate. The Labour Party, which is currently in power, has about 300,000 members, whereas the electorate numbers well over 46,000,000. Most people vote, but don't have much involvement in politics beyond that.
@fesshole Bit of a turncoat, are you?
@fesshole You have provided enough information to track the veracity of your claim and point out your identity. Not something I am going to be bothered to pursue but just pointing out the fact.
@fesshole As long as you don't conspire to have your lover murdered, by luring them to the Florida everglades to be eaten by an alligator, you could be party leader.