To those who didn't use it, please do not burden us with moaning and complaints in the five years to come. Apathy and voter disenchantment cannot possibly tell the whole story. Even to a critical supporter of this government, this much is clear. During the campaign I was asked to take an elderly lady in a car to vote and she was obviously in some pain. It's a pity younger people don't have the same attitude.
Politicians have only themselves to blame for the low turnout.
Fourteen years of teaching politics has shown me that students are moved by considering the ends, rather than the means, of political association. Obsessions with spin and style, with debates about the relative merits of PFIs and public financing, with devolution, even with Europe, are guaranteed to turn off younger voters unless they are expressed in a way that makes it clear what ultimately drives these debates. For most of us, there has been no election. Unless you live in a swing marginal, the parties will have wasted no effort on you. As it is, MPs will revive the howling imbecility of prime minister's questions and congratulate themselves on a job well done.