Is anyone else exhausted?
Having two fairly young kids makes me pretty tired all the time, that’s a given, but my reference about being weary is more about the current political climate rather than the numbers of Zzzzs I manage to secure on a nightly basis.
It wasn’t long ago that we had an independence referendum, then we had the Brexit vote, and now we’ve got all sorts of chatter about a second vote on independence which may or may not happen.
That’s all fine, and that takes care of itself, but this week I sat in what was the final meeting of Fife Council’s executive committee before May’s local council elections and had a small sigh to myself.
Political point scoring was present as per usual, with all sides having a sly dig here and there ahead of next month’s poll.
No more than usual though, and there was even a bit of consensus breaking out on a number of issues. Indeed, Labour and the SNP joined forces to ensure social care charges would be frozen for the next year.
Some opponents suggested the spectre of the upcoming elections was the driving force behind the move, and I’m guessing they probably wouldn’t be too far off the mark.
Still, it was nice to see.
To be honest, my melancholy stemmed from the fact that I’ve suddenly realised we’ve all got another few weeks of campaigning to endure as politicians try to secure the votes they need to get elected.
Logistically for us in the Fife office, it’s a lot of work. But that’s par for the course in this business, and our coverage of the local elections is due to get underway this very week.
That’s not my whine.
Instead, I’m just tired of election talk in general – and we haven’t even got started yet. I’m hoping it’s a wee lull in proceedings before the nitty gritty of next month.
But if I’m feeling like that, as someone immersed in the whole local democracy thing, how on earth is the wider public feeling about it all?
I’m not sure whether it has been the blanket coverage of Brexit, or indeed indyref2, but I think this year’s prospective Fife Council candidates are going to find it harder than ever to encourage folk out to vote on May 4.
Turnout wasn’t particularly high in 2012, ranging from 30% to 44% across the 23 wards on that occasion, and some of the by-elections in recent years have only mustered just over the 25% mark.
And even though the independence referendum seemed to force folk out of the door in their droves September 2014, I fear there’s a real danger that voter apathy might be the headline.
I really hope not, as the make-up of Fife Council is a very important thing and I’m a firm believer that everyone should make their votes count.
I suppose now it’s all down to the candidates to give Fifers something to vote for.
