Congratulations to Adrian Sanders, the former MP for Torbay, who won a local council seat in yesterday’s by-election, increasing the percentage of votes from 30% to a stonking 69%. The by-election followed the sad death of long-standing Lib Dem councillor Ruth Pentney.
Clifton-with-Maidenway (Torbay) full result:
Adrian Sanders Liberal Democrat 1096 – 69.2% (+39.3)
Conservative 235 – 14.8% (-13.7)
UKIP 158 – 10.0% (-9.7)
Labour 53 – 3.3% (-9.0)
Green 43 – 2.7% (-6.8)
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19 Comments
A wonderful result, and further reason to make Torbay a target for 2020
Congratulations on another great result. Since September I have been looking at changes in our vote share in seats we last fought in May, this is the 13th & brings the average change to a rise of 11.5%. Of course we wont really know if our vote is improving till next May but these byelections are hopeful signs at least.
Tories gained another seat last night from the Lib Dems in Aberdeenshire.
Many congratulations, Adrian! It’s time for the notorious “Torbay pendulum” to swing back to the Lib Dems.
For context on our loss in Scotland, it was one of those multi-seat things so not as bad as the headline.
Con – 36.3% (+9.8%)
SNP – 35.4% (+0.7%)
LD – 22.9% (+4.7%)
Labour – 4.8% (+4.8%)
Libertarian – 0.5% (+0.5%)
With limited resources, both financial and physical, IF the party is to fashion any kind of comeback, then the majority of these resources, as well as time and effort, must be concentrated in the West Country.
Paul – that’s not a figure I’ve seen but if true would take us from 8% in May to 19%. For comparision the party got a 16% estimated national vote share in 2012 so it isn’t that big an increase in the seats up for re-election. And I’m always cautious that performance in by-elections is usually generally better than in the all ups.
Generally both local by-elections and opinion polls point to the party’s support being generally flat over the last year or so. As it stands we may well make fewer net gains Jan-Dec than in those months of 2014.
John Marriott
Not as simple as you have described, of course. Most “resources” available are people, on the ground. Many can only be “used” relatively locally to where they live. Comebacks must be fashioned where there is a critical mass on the ground.
Well done Adrian.
There has always been something special about Adrian. He has always been committed to Torbay and the town where he was born. The dignity which he showed when ‘robbed’ of a much deserved European seat before by a foul deception. The determination then to fight on, to victory in the Westminster seat in 1997, and now the conviction he has shown by immediately stepping into the breach in this by-election, when others might have been tempted to accept a quieter life.
He showed huge distinction during his years as an MP, never more so than in the last Parliament.
Now we see him again at the forefront of the fightback.
Thank you Adrian and Ali.
@Hywel. Thats a fair point. As of now I am not expecting us to make big gains in May, we cant really expect to make up 5 years of losing support all in a year.
Well done indeed. How do fancy being the next elected Mayor, Adrian?
Brilliant!
Well done indeed to Adrian. However it must have seemed remarkable locally that instead of licking his wounds a defeated MP picked himself up, dusted himself off and started all over again as a Council candidate. In other words let’s not get too carried away with the figures here. Mind you it still brightens the morning somewhat!
Why does the postcard bear a pre-decimalisation stamp; LibDems living in the past?
I wonder how many candidates in in England have ever scored Twenty Three times as many votes as the Labour candidate? 🙂
@Nick: Just an alternative timeline.
@ David-1
Let’s do the Time Warp again
What an amazing result. Congratulations Adrian. We will have something to celebrate at the regional conference this coming weekend.
Don’t get carried away….the Lib Dem candidate was MP for the area from 1997 until May this year. Plus Lib Dems do much better in local elections. This year some areas had local elections on the same day, the Lib Dems would have picked up Bath, Portsmouth South, Eastbourne, Eastleigh and Yeovil if people voted same for local and Westminster!