Our View of Elections

Why vote in elections? All the vested interests of society; blg business, the media, the pro-capitallst parties and the churches, have a ready answer. They say that It'sthe mainspring of democracy and that it ls through the electoral process that we can all cantrol and mun ‘our society.

Most workers Know instinctlvely that the Is nonsense and in Ireland its not hard to see why. Through partition the British are able to gerrymander the vote. Even then, when the results don't suit them they can change the rules as they did following Bobby Sands victory. It ia this sortof analysis that led Republicans to boycott for years and that even now leads them. to view elactions as mainly propaganda initiatives subordinate to the armed struggle.

The sort of class analysis presented by Karl Marx gives a more rounded picture, It shows that Partition and the British presence and the lack of real national Independence prevent a developed demecrcy from being established, It alao shows that greater levels of demecracy do mot lead to Workers power, The fact i thal we live in a society rulad by the capitalist class and democracy is the best system of rule for capitalism just as faudalism was the best ayetem for the kings and noblas who ruled before thousands of unarmed workers).

Rights struggle. This is because these rights are important defensive weapons for the working class. A big vole for Labour In Gritain won't stop the capitalist offansive or a vote for Sinn Fein halt the Northern assembly, but they will give the workers time io prepare a fightback. Parliaments give workers representatives a chance te conirant the caplilists and use lt asa platfonn to define their own programma = this is why the Republican abstentionist policy is. wrang. in reaard ta ensure the obedience of the rulad and armed force a3 a permanent method of control is too unstable. In any case the capitalists are too much a minority and modern society too complex for them to rule by naked force alone. They need a system which allows workers to be represented and to participate without having power, But as Marx Pointed out the state ls not neutral. Any workers government that won an election and then expected the capitalist-controllad police and army to disarm would be in for a surprise! (The last Socialist to try this was Salvador Allende of Chile. The generals assassinated him and tens of So is marxist analysis just a more long-minded way of saying that elections are useless? No! Wa musti't forget that workers fought and diad forthe vote and that the demand for a local Government vota “was an important factor inthe early Givil Workers. left for another issue! Journalist to challenge section 31: candidates. has yel to fully establish itself and Nationalist absention can yet bring it dawn). The value of these democratic rights is. shawn mast clearly during the election itself. The state forces, normally ready to drive you off the streets, are reduced to petty harrasment. - they ane even required to provide a tree postal service so that you can send revolutionary propaganda to — the How then can alections be used for revolutionary changél Marx said firmly that the independent mass organisation of the workers was key, Anyone who sees elections as bringing change by themselves is living ina dream-warld butignoring them orusing them simply as propaganda vehicles ls Irresponsible. Elections properly used are a springboard for organisatlon and independant action by the working class. The problem is that only clase-conachous parties of the working class have the programme to do this effectively, The questions posed in bullding such 4 party are best Inthe last issue of Socialist Republic’ wa reported anew campaign for presafreedomnaw . as wego to press, there are reports that ATE journalists will raact to the Government ban on Sinn Fain