We all know that the British electoral system stinks, but I’ve got a simpler way – even simpler than proportional representation – to make sure every vote counts, and to (perhaps) make politicians a bit more honest: vote ‘RON’.

No, I haven’t had my morning coffee spiked with LSD and I haven’t completely lost my marbles. I can explain.

I went to university in Manchester. And while I spent quite a bit of time sampling that wonderful city’s many delights, I was also daft enough to stand for the student union. That’s where I first encountered RON – the only candidate to stand in every election.

The feat was achieved because RON was not a person (although one student did change their name by deed poll, which created a bit of a fuss). He was an acronym. RON stands for "reopen nominations".

RON gave the student body a choice that is unavailable to the British electorate. Voters could reject all of the candidates they were presented with, and ask for some new ones instead.

It’s not as crazy as it sounds. Currently the only way you can mount such a protest in a national or local election is to spoil your ballot paper by writing, say, “screw the lot of you” in big, bold letters. Or to leave it blank. Or to stay home and lose the opportunity to make your voice heart.

UK General Election 2017 Show all 47 1 /47 UK General Election 2017 UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May leaves 10 Downing Street for the 1922 committee on June 12, 2017 in London, England. British Prime Minister Theresa May held her first cabinet meeting with her re-shuffled team today Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 DUP leader Arlene Foster stands alongside deputy leader Nigel Dodds as they hold a press conference at Stormont Castle as the Stormont assembly power sharing negotiations reconvene following the general election on June 12, 2017 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Discussions between the DUP and the Conservative party are also continuing in the wake of the UK general election as Prime Minister Theresa May looks to form a government with the help of the Democratic Unionist parties ten Westminster seats. 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Getty Images UK General Election 2017 12 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May (C, L) holds the first Cabinet meeting of her new team. Getty UK General Election 2017 11 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May attends church in her constituency with her husband Philip May, a few days after disappointing results in a general election. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn leaves Labour Party HQ this morning, following a general election yesterday. Parliament is hung, with no individual party gaining an overall majority. Post general election reaction. Rex UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND - JUNE 09: DUP leader and Northern Ireland former First Minister Arlene Foster (C) holds a brief press conference with the DUP's newly elected Westminster candidates who stood in the general election Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A " Get May Out" demo took place opposite the gates of Downing Street, calling for May to resign, after the shock election results and Mays coalition with the DUP. Rex Features UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A demonstrator wears a mask depicting Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May, poses with a mock gravestone bearing the words "Hard Brexit, RIP", during a protest photocall near the entrance 10 Downing Street in central London AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters in London Reuters UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May flanked by her husband Philip delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street in central Londo Getty UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party Theresa May leaves Buckingham Palace in London the day after a general election in which the Conservatives lost their majority Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 A TV cameraman watches the door of 10 Downing Street in London Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is greeted by his Office Director Karie Murphy as he arrives at Labour Party HQ in Westminster, London, after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should 'go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country' Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrives at the Conservative Party's headquarters with her husband Philip in London REUTERS/Peter Nicholls UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ukip leader Paul Nuttall speaks during a press conference at Boston West Golf Club where he announced that he is standing down as party leader Joe Giddens/PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Ruth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, leaves the counting centre for Britain's general election with her partner Jen Wilson in Edinburgh, Scotland REUTERS/Russell Cheyne UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale celebrates with candidate for Edinburgh South Ian Murray as he retains his seat at the Meadowbank Sports Centre counting centre in Edinburgh, Scotland Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon speaks to the media at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election Andrew Milligan/PA Wire UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson at Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh, as counting is under way for the General Election PA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Britain's opposition Labour Party, arrives at the Labour Party's Headquarters in London REUTERS/Marko Djurica UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 UKIP Leader Paul Nuttall leaves in a car following the vote count for the constituency of Boston and Skegness in Boston, England Anthony Devlin/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 9 June 2017 British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Theresa May speaks at the declaration at the election count at the Magnet Leisure Centre in Maidenhead, England. 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Britain goes to the polls on June 8 to vote in a general election only days after another terrorist attack on the nation's capital AFP/Getty Images UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 Election workers, George Gaunt and Luca Tragid deliver the first ballot boxes, on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh AFP UK General Election 2017 6 June 2017 British Prime Minister Theresa May meets with Conservative party supporters during an election campaign visit to a bakery during an election campaign visit on June 6, 2017 in Fleetwood, north-west England. 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Quite a lot of people did the latter in the recent French Presidential elections. There’s a good case for saying that Marine Len Pen came third in the French presidential run off, if you take abstentions into account. Le Pen gained a record 10.8m votes for the National Front against 20.8m for the victorious Emmanuel Macron.

However, 12.1m French voters failed to turn out; a further 3.6m spoiled their papers. Based on that, “abstain” got 15.7 million votes and was within a shot of winning. I rather wonder if abstaining might have proved the most popular option of all, had there been a less divisive candidate than Le Pen opposing Macron.

How would those numbers have looked if voters could have made a positive choice to say “none of the above,” rather than spoiling their papers? If they could say instead, please find us someone else? Could Le Ron have actually won?

So, back to Britain. Because I believe we should have 50 per cent female representation in politics, I’d advocate RON getting to stand in half the constituencies, rather than all of them, with the other half featuring RONA (reopen nominations anew).

I have to confess I initially chose AVA (Another Vote, Assholes) as the name for RON’s sister, but I don’t really want to give some ex-colonel in the shires a heart attack at the polling booth, so I came up with a more decorous acronym.

For many people this election is about the least worst option. RON or RONA might give them a better one, a more effective way to express their unhappiness with the candidates on offer than spoiling their papers.

Regrettably, the media doesn’t pay great attention to the numbers of the latter, although they are always counted and included in the official results. RON and RONA (or AVA) surely would get noticed, however. There could hardly be a greater humiliation than losing to one of them. It would be quite a story.

I remember the looks on the faces of my fellow student hacks when RON looked like he was getting uncomfortably close during counts. I do believe he might have won on the odd occasion. It must have been hard for those defeated by him to live that down. It would be harder still in a national poll.

Imagine the BBC switching to Frentshire East Central. The camera pans across concerned groups of party workers before switching to the reporter: “Yes, we look like we could have a shock here. There is a real chance that RONA could win.”

Then imagine if the Election 2017 were to return as the returning officer gets up on stage to say, “and the duly elected candidate for Frentshire East Central is RONA”.

Getting turned over by RON in a student election: bad. Getting beaten by RON or RONA (or AVA) in a national election? The defeated candidates might never recover.

General Election polls and projections: June 8

Unlikely? Have a look at this year’s candidates.

Consider Theresa May’s miserable excuse for a campaign and her abject cowardice in refusing to attend televised debates. Consider, too, that while Jeremy Corbyn has proved to be surprisingly effective, a lot of Labour voters will only cast their votes for him with great reluctance. And then there’s Tim Farron.

Still think RON and RONA might not have a chance, at least in some?