Election series article # 7: WP not standing in any electorates in 2011

In the last few elections the Workers Party has stood candidates in a number of electorates. In the 2008 election we became a registered party after signing up over 500 members and we were therefore able to stand a party list. The intention of standing in the elections was to try and raise the profile of both socialist ideas and our own organisation. The 2008 election gave quite clear evidence that this strategy wasn’t working with not only an extremely low vote but also the fact that the campaign did not win people over to our politics. This opinion was universal within the organisation prior to January this year. The party has no policy against standing in local or general elections under different circumstances such as increased class activity or increased support for the organisation or individual members who may find good opportunities to stand as candidates.