ELECTIONS are brewing and already the dogs have started barking.

The election antics we are viewing from the UK, France and USA have started conversations locally about what we might expect.

Voting is not compulsory in the United Kingdom, with elections operating on a first-past-the-post system where candidates can be elected with only 25 to 30 percent of the votes delivered.

In France, when a positive result of 50 percent or more is not reached in the first round, another vote follows in order to achieve a majority result.

In the recent French election we saw an initial move to political right and far right candidates.

However, in the next round voters selected left of centre candidates.

This all looks to be very messy to those watching from afar.

The UK meanwhile has ditched its Conservative government.

Voters went for anyone who wasn’t Conservative, resulting in a win for the Labor Party and victories for independents and some far right candidates.

To many observers both the UK and French results looked messy, but the USA’s presidential election looks even messier.

Then in September it will be the voters of NSW who will be required to select local government councillors.

Voting is compulsory.

There are 128 local government areas in NSW but only 126 elections this time.

As the MidCoast area is run as one large parcel we can assume that the higher population areas of Taree and Forster will elect the majority, if not all, of the councillors.

Federal elections are also approaching, with the government having the power to call the election any time after August.

It must be held by May 2025.

That leaves our NSW state election, a four-year fixed term event, which is not due until March of 2027.

I can’t help but think how messy this all looks but I just hope we get through it better than the big guys are doing.

By John BLACKBOURN