An interesting article on Politics Home highlights how our campaign team is now targeting more seats based on the new boundaries.

PoliticsHome understands that there are a number of areas across the country where Lib Dem activists are confident that the new make-up of seats could play in their favour, generally in areas where Lib Dem council wards are merging into areas that currently have Conservative MPs or have leaned Conservative in the past, and campaigners are now specifically targeting their canvassingin patches.

They talk to Victoria Collins, our candidate in the newly formed seat of  Harpenden and Berkhamstead, who told them:

Victoria Collins, who has been selected as the Lib Dems candidate for Harpenden and Berkhamsted, told PoliticsHome that there has been a “groundswell” of movement towards her party in the area, as demonstrated by local election results over the last few years as the party have made gains.

She said that she was selected before this year’s local elections and the final results of the boundary review. “We were looking forward and saying ‘actually, how do we start building a campaign for the next general election?’,” she explained.

The article also cites how our campaign in Selby and Ainsty targeted parts of the constituency that are moving into the new Harrogate and Knaresborough seat:

Multiple party sources have told PoliticsHome that in Yorkshire last month, they instead decided to micro-focus their attention on the small part of the constituency that is set to switch into a target area for them at the next election, playing a longer game to gain early support of this new set of voters.

We are apparently way ahead of the Tories in dealing with the new boundaries:

One Lib Dem source said they believed that in-fighting in the Tory party has “completely distracted them from newly-formed constituencies” in which they should otherwise be charming new voters.

“We are finding Conservative MPs running away from some new ‘Blue Wall’ seats because they know the Liberal Democrats are on a winning streak,” they said.

“In some areas, our candidates are getting on with the job and are already recognised as the MP in-waiting. The internal drama within the Conservative party has completely distracted them from newly-formed constituencies.”

* Newshound: bringing you the best Lib Dem commentary in print, on air or online.