Small parties lose their gloss, giving National a big lead

by Auckland union activist According to recent poll results Labour remains steady, but National has gained at the expense of the smaller parties. While Labour's support has not moved down, Labour has failed to capture the imagination of new grassroots voters for their centrist politics. And their chances of governing again are slipping as voter support for the smaller parties, particularly the Greens, appears to be weakening. In my opinion where the smaller left leaning parties have failed, is by becoming captured by the Labour government, dragging them to the right. This happened most spectacularly in the past with the Alliance, and now we see the same process occurring with the Greens. This has obviously made them indistinguishable from Labour to grassroots voters. Potentially the People's Procession to Parliament, which will be delivering the message to the politicians that people don’t want their food taxed, could tap into the mood for change for the left. RAM, a people’s movement, which will be standing a full list of candidates for the party vote and a number of electoral candidates, could be an attractive option for grassroots voters disillusioned with the other parties. To beat National we need RAM to succeed. See Nat's Romping Ahead from the Dominion Post, 16 August 2008. Visit RAM's website http://www.ram.org.nz/