Electoralism, Reformism and Bourgeois Media in the UK Elections
Written By: John Braydenson
Another election has come and gone among much fanfare in the United Kingdom (UK). Of course, Marxists are aware of the obvious futility of the vote for improving the lives and well-being of the working class – an improvement that is mutually incompatible with the long-term needs and functions of any capitalist system. But this election, although seemingly so far away from our own conditions in Australia, does provide useful contributions to our theory and to our practice.
The key point of interest in the UK elections was the sharp defeat of the Labour Party, which lost 59 seats in the UK Parliament, leaving them with a total of 203 seats.1 What had been a monumental gain in the previous election – when the Labour Party won 30 seats 2 – has now become a catastrophic decline. Yet, surprising to many liberals and conservatives, the Labour Party did not fall as far as many had predicted, with some pundits expecting that the Labour Party would fall to a total of 191 seats.3 Regardless, the electoral loss was detrimental to any authority that the party may have possessed in the UK Parliament.
A surprised individual may ask: “Where did all their seats go?”
There is no surprise where the other seats disappeared to. The Conservative Party gained 47 seats, leaving them with a total of 365 seats and the Scottish National Party gained 13 seats, leaving them with a total of 48 seats. Other parties also gained some seats, though these parties are currently too small to have any great influence over the wider proletariat in the UK. In England and Wales, the lost Labour seats primarily became Conservative; in Scotland, many Labour (and Conservative) seats became Scottish National seats.
To liberals, the answer behind these changes lies in the slander campaign against Corbyn and the Labour Party as well as the great melodramatic interplay between the cast of politicians in the theatre of the House of Commons. Many liberals, however, overstate the importance of the slander in the fall of the Labour Party, purposely ignoring the other components of the matter. Limited by their ideological lens, they fail to see that these changes in the parliamentary distribution clearly highlight two significant developments within the UK.
In the case of England and Wales, the Labour Party has fallen out of favour in many of the more rural regions and has been replaced by support for the Conservative Party. This is not a surprising phenomenon. It is something that has consistently occurred throughout the Western world when social democrats receive even an ounce of authority, power or influence over liberal political institutions. Also, as the Labour Party is mostly a party of social democrats, the phenomena fits rather well, serving as an important contributing factor to the fall of the party in the recent elections.
“It becomes obvious that the Labour Party would be the target of such a slander campaign, even if the party is not currently capable of attempting these reforms”
In general, the social democrats fail and lose support from the masses when it becomes clear to the masses that the social democrats can not satisfy their claims nor fulfill their promises, so they turn to the right-wing parties for support. There is an important reason as to why this happens so often: Social democractic governments, dependent on overripe capitalist systems, cannot last as long as capitalist economies continue to enter recessions and for as long as the victims of imperialism continue to fight against imperialist objectives – both of which threaten the flow and exchange of capital. Social democracy requires a world in which, as Marx and Engels put it: “the proletariat should remain within the bounds of existing society, but should cast away all its hateful ideas concerning the bourgeoisie,”4 a world in which class cooperation becomes paramount. Yet such a world is impossible! For the very nature of class society is to drive and to develop the conflict between the oppressor and the oppressed, the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. As the social democrats seek to reform society for the so-called “betterment” of the proletariat, the bourgeoisie come into direct conflict with these goals since any reform that improves the conditions of workers necessarily harms ruling class interests.
With this in mind, it becomes obvious that the Labour Party would be the target of such a slander campaign, even if the party is not currently capable of attempting these reforms. Bourgeois media will find any excuse to conduct propaganda against anyone who provides even the slightest fetter and hindrance to the accumulation of capital. For although the Labour Party has not possessed substantial influence over the UK Parliament since 2010,5 it is clear that the influence of bourgeois media and class interests have encouraged the masses to turn to more conservative groups over their social democratic counterparts. Thus, the Labour Party has been greatly unable to pursue its goals without quick and powerful opposition from bourgeois outlets.
“The Labour Party mostly consists of social democrats and other appeasers of capitalism, there is a small group within it that promote a democratic socialist rhetoric: a desire for socialism, yet through the “democratic” processes of liberal political institutions”
This phenomenon demonstrates the strength that the bourgeois state possesses in its influence over electoral outcomes.6 This is why we must draw our attention not only to the party itself, but also to the underlying class interests that are played out during these situations. Here, we can understand the importance of bourgeois media in the given circumstances. Bourgeois media has convinced many among the masses to recall the errors and missteps of the Labour Party in the past and to take these into personal consideration throughout the recent elections. It has produced its propaganda in an attempt to undermine any attempts to even somewhat alleviate the suffering of the working class. All within bourgeois interests and desires.
Additionally, it is important to mention that, although the Labour Party mostly consists of social democrats and other appeasers of capitalism, there is a small group within it that promote a democratic socialist rhetoric: a desire for socialism, yet through the “democratic” processes of liberal political institutions. Although the validity of Corbyn’s self-described democratic socialist label is up for debate, it is important to mention the flaws in such an approach, for it is another important contributing factor to the fall of the Labour Party in the recent elections.
The democratic socialists fail in a similar fashion to the social democrats: When the claims and promises fail to materialise in reality, the masses move towards the right-wing parties, the parties that will genuinely, efficiently and happily reach their bourgeois goals, disguised beneath the flowery and idealist veils of liberal ideology. This happens so often because democratic socialists often fail to realise the consequences of two key points in their methods. Firstly, they seek to reform capitalist society into a socialist society, as opposed to establishing socialism through a revolution against capitalism. Secondly, they seek to redesign the capitalist foundations and to develop socialist foundations upon it, as opposed to destroying the capitalist foundations and building socialist ones upon the ashes of the former. Ultimately, they seek reform and redesign. To democratic socialists, a capitalist society can gradually evolve into a socialist one without any drastic, sudden changes that utterly destroy the capitalist system. Yet this has, does and will continue to fail, time and time again. The democratic socialists often err and forget that, as Lenin said: “the proletariat must smash the state machine,” “replace it by a new one, and in this way make their political rule the foundation of the socialist reorganisation of society.”7 For, if the old bourgeois institutions are not destroyed and laid waste, these old institutions, that in no way support the creation of proletarian institutions or socialism, will do all that is necessary to undermine, to demonise and to kill the progressive forces that seek to liberate the proletariat. Without a dictatorship of the proletariat, there is little to defend against the onslaught of the dictatorship of the bourgeoisie, foreign or domestic. The aspirations of democratic socialists are admirable, yet faulty at best. Hence, the successful slander campaign against the Labour Party was heightened and able to succeed due to the power of the bourgeois state and its propaganda machine. Again, bourgeois media strives to indoctrinate the masses and to align them with the opposing class interests of the bourgeoisie.
Then, there is the case of Scotland. Not only did the Labour Party lose seats, but the Conservative Party did too. Instead the Scottish National Party, a nationalist social democrat party, won these seats. This appears to be an interesting twist in comparison to the state of England and Wales, for a somewhat progressive force in the UK had triumphed in the elections within Scotland. Again, as it must be reiterated and repeated until it is well understood: Social democracy is heavily-flawed and clearly seeks to generally sustain the status quo. But, in this case, the Scottish National Party’s primary agenda is the independence of Scotland from the UK, if that is what the people of Scotland desire. This is a potentially progressive feature. Beneath the general norms of typical liberal parties, this party may very well possess a character that could undermine the imperialist UK by disassembling it from within. The fact that here, the bourgeois media, particularly in Scotland, appear less aggressive towards the Scottish National Party is somewhat alarming. So, the actual application of national independence may vary greatly and could very well further UK imperialism and strengthen capitalist tendencies within a newly-created Scottish state. It may suggest that it is in the interests of the bourgeoisie for Scotland to become independent. The question of Scottish independence, however, remains a complicated affair, but one with a potential for proletarian liberation, if achievable in the same circumstances as national independence.8 The national question of Scotland, although perhaps not as important to the international community as the tried and failed efforts of the social democrats and democratic socialists in the Western world, remains an important matter to note.
‘But what does this all mean for Australia? That’s all in the UK!’
Indeed, it is all in the UK. But the events that have transpired and continue to transpire in the UK are proofs of our theory and also provide us with a means to learn and to develop our theory and to improve our own practice in Australian conditions. This is why we look abroad, at times at the strongholds of capitalism and imperialism themselves, because Australia is not too dissimilar from the general imperialist and capitalist mold of the Western world.
We can conclude that, when our own social democrat and democratic socialist parties fail in elections through errors in policy it is in large part due to their general incapability to maintain their promises and the potent influences of bourgeois media and other liberal outlets. So it is important for the Australian Communist Party to step in to fill the void. Otherwise, the masses will turn to right-wing parties with their bourgeois solution. If we do not intervene, do not show our own program, do not declare our own goals, do not provide our own means to achieve these ends and do not succeed in our actions, the masses will have nowhere to go except right-wing groups. Bourgeois media will continue to encourage this anti-proletarian behaviour among the masses for as long as capitalism exists. So, we must combat liberalism and supply proletarian media that supports and fosters class consciousness. We must forge our position to the Australian masses, stand and triumph where the “left” parties fail.
“The Australian Communist Party must step in. This is how we can gather the support of the masses, leading them towards genuine, realistic solutions to the problems of capitalism”
We see this so clearly in our conditions. In our own elections this year, the Labor Party failed to gather a majority against the Liberal-National Coalition,9 despite a gain of 14 seats in the previous election.10 This should not surprise us, as the Labor Party consistently fails to improve the lives of the working class during periods of recession and crisis. As a result, the Labor Party is quick to fall out of favour among many, even in the working class.
It is in situations such as these, in particular in post-election seasons and during recessions and crises that the Australian Communist Party must step in. This is how we can gather the support of the masses, leading them towards genuine, realistic solutions to the problems of capitalism. Through this, we raise class consciousness across the working class, allowing them to realise the power in their hands to change society for their betterment.
Of course, the Australian Communist Party, as a new and developing party, could not seize the initiative. We cannot change the past – so be it! At least now we know very well about the role that the Australian Communist Party must play in the future. Only through our interventions can we show the shortcomings of social democracy, present realistic solutions to the problems of the Australian condition and reveal that the capitalist institutions of Australian society will only continue to worsen the plight of the working class.
Here, we know what we must do
We must focus on the proletariat. We, as Mao said, must: “act in accordance with the needs and wishes of the masses.”11 We must apply a proper strategy where we experience the frustrations of the proletariat as the social democrats, democratic socialists and other idealist parties fail to satisfy their needs and wishes. We must learn from them and develop from them. We must allow them to realise their conditions and to represent them in their struggle against the bourgeoisie and the capitalist system.
Thus, we stand different from the other parties, for we become actively involved in the life and development of the proletariat
We must focus on the opponents of the proletariat: the bourgeoisie, its propaganda machine, its state apparatus; the conservatives, the liberals, the social democrats and the fascists. We must fight against bourgeois influences that seek to undermine the proletariat. We must thoroughly analyse, scrutinise and criticise the opponents of the proletariat, undermining their efforts to prolong the capitalist system.
Thus, we stand different from the other parties, for we incorporate our anti-capitalist theory into our practice and act accordingly
We must strengthen and consolidate the proletariat, arming them with theory and through practice. We must act and adapt to the changing situations of the world, learning from the mistakes and successes of others and applying them to our conditions. We must lead the proletariat and truly represent them in their struggle against capitalism and its components, championing the movement in its pursuit for revolution and socialism.
Thus, we stand different from the other parties, for we promote a revolutionary dialectical materialist course of action
We must know precisely what is to be done. We must continue to champion a revolutionary course of action. It is the course that clearly states and aims to destroy the existing bourgeois foundations, that aims to build new, proletariat foundations, that aims to construct socialism upon these new foundations. It fundamentally seeks to destroy the private bourgeois ownership of the means of production. We must incorporate this understanding into our practice to develop the proletariat against the bourgeoisie.
Thus, we stand different from the other parties, for we refuse to promote liberal institutions and ideology and only encourage Marxism and revolution as the final means to overcome the flaws and misfortunes of the capitalist system
We strive to not err like the social democrats and democratic socialists did in the UK and Australia as we continue to expose the clear, objective way forwards for the working class. We will stand our ground and oppose the constant attacks of the bourgeoisie against the plight of the proletariat. We will not compromise with the bourgeoisie for anything less than that complete removal from society. Then, unlike the social democrats and democratic socialists, we shall be closer to achieving victory for the working class.
REFERENCES
1 See all 2019 UK general election results in the BBC article: <https://www.bbc.com/news/election/2019/results>
2 See all 2017 UK general election results in the BBC article: <https://www.bbc.com/news/election/2017/results>
3 See an image of the 2019 UK exit poll in the Irish Times article: <https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/uk/uk-election-2019-exit-poll-decisive-conservative-party-win-predicted-1.4113024>
4 See Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, Manifesto of the Communist Party (1948) for the complete quote. Available at: <https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/download/pdf/Manifesto.pdf>
5 See all 2010 UK general election results in the BBC article: <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/election2010/results/>
6 See Vladimir Lenin, The State and Revolution (1918) for a general understanding of a Marxist perspective on the state apparatus. Available at: <https://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1917/staterev/>
7 See Vladimir Lenin, The State and Revolution (1918) for the complete quote. Available at: <https://www.marxists.org/ebooks/lenin/state-and-revolution.pdf>
8 See Joseph Stalin, Marxism and the National Question (1913) for a general understanding of a Marxist perspective on independence movements. Available at: <https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/stalin/works/1913/03a.htm>
9 See all 2019 Australian federal election results in the ABC article: <https://www.abc.net.au/news/elections/federal/2019/results>
10 See all 2016 Australian federal election results in the ABC article: <https://www.abc.net.au/news/federal-election-2016/>
11 See Mao Zedong, The United Front in Cultural Work (1944) for the complete quote. Available at: <https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/mao/selected-works/volume-3/mswv3_21.htm>
See Mao Zedong, Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong (1966), in particular, Chapter 11: ‘The Mass Line’ for more quotes about the involvement of the Party with the masses.