Support
The most obvious reason for a person to support a joke party is simply that they enjoy the humour. There are, however, other arguments advanced in favour of joke parties. Some supporters, for example, say that joke parties perform an important public service, ensuring that people do not take politicians too seriously. Joke parties also receive votes from people who are disillusioned by the political process, or who feel that none of the "serious" parties are worth voting for. This is sometimes directly encouraged — in New Zealand, McGillicuddy Serious sometimes advertised itself as an entertaining way to waste one's vote. Some voters feel that voting for a joke party is a useful form of protest vote. Tomma Talande Stolar (Empty Vocal Seats) in Sweden was formed to the stated objective of getting a seat in the parliament and leaving it empty.
For the most part, joke parties do not win seats, although there have been a number of notable exceptions. The defunct Polish Beer-Lovers' Party was probably the most successful joke party, having won sixteen seats in the Sejm (3.5% of the total) in the 1991 elections. In Iceland, joke party Besti flokkurinn (The Best Party) founded by comedian Jón Gnarr won local council elections in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavík, winning 34.7% of the votes, compared to the Independence Party's 33.6%, and won six seats on the council.
Other parties, such as the Monster Raving Loony Party, have won seats on local councils. Even if a joke party does not win, however, it may still poll better than other unsuccessful "serious" parties.
Read more about this topic: Frivolous Political Party
Famous quotes containing the word support:
“The wisest thing a parent can do is to let preschool children figure out themselves how to draw the human figure, or solve a whole range of problems, from overcoming Saturday-morning boredom to dealing with a neighborhood bully. But even while standing on the sidelines, parents can frequently offer support in helping children discover what they want to accomplish.”
—John F. Clabby (20th century)
“Because the young child feels with such intensity, he experiences sorrows that seem inconsolable and losses that feel unbearable. A precious toy gets broken or a good-bye cannot be endured. When this happens, words like “sad” or “disappointed” seem a travesty because they cannot possibly capture the enormity of the child’s loss. He needs a loving adult presence to support him in his pain but he does not want to be talked out of it.”
—Alicia F. Lieberman (20th century)
“‘Tis not enough to help the feeble up,
But to support him after.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)