Footage of a roving reporter asking people in Stepney who they are voting for in the 1974 General Election, and who they think will win.

Shaped by a number of serious issues, including the miners' strike, rising inflation, and government-imposed three-day working week, the 1974 General Election was a key turning point. In the third part of The Basement Project's '74 Election coverage, the young presenter heads out to the streets of Stepney to interview a variety of canvassers and voters, also catching the Communist Party candidate Kevin Halpin and Labour's Peter Shore (who ended up winning the constituency with a landslide 80%). During vox pops outside a polling station, at a bus stop and in a local pub, he asks respondents who they had voted for and who they think will win. Some are keen to share their opinions and party preference, while some seem to not even be sure which party they had just voted for. A few participants provide in-depth analysis of the political and economic situation, whilst others consider voting "a waste of time". One of the key themes is the UK's recent accession to the Common Market (i.e. European Communities, later the European Union). The UK's membership is blamed for rising prices and "getting England into a lot of trouble", not just by some of those interviewed but also by the presenter, who often makes clear his party preference. Towards the end of the video, as he is about to vote for the first time himself, he offers to take the viewers through the process with him. However, not only are the camera and mic not allowed entry into the polling station - with an inquisitive policeman coming over to investigate - it turns out he is not on the electoral register in this location and is sent to look elsewhere. He carries on speaking to the locals, with Labour seemingly generating the greatest level of support.

This video is from the London Community Video Archive, a member of the London's Screen Archives Network.