This is the week of unusually scheduled by-elections and both of them have been good for the Lib Dems. On Tuesday, the party almost pulled off a sensational gain from the Tories. Their 9 vote deficit puts them in a very good position for next time.
Last night, John Birch gained a seat from Labour, this time, in Totnes in Devon.
Labour didn’t defend the seat, but there was an independent candidate.
Totnes (South Hams) result:
LDEM: 44.2% (+22.6)
GRN: 27.1% (-14.4)
IND: 21.3% (+21.3)
CON: 7.4% (-9.9)
Labour didn't stand.— Britain Elects (@britainelects) July 27, 2016
This is great news – and John’s campaign was boosted when Cllr Robert Vint, Devon’s only Green Councillor, rejoined the Liberal Democrats.
Now, if you want to be part of making more good news happen, there are more chances to do so today.
Carmel Townsend fights to retain the St Julian’s ward in Newport. Her husband Ed held it by just one vote. He sadly died in May.
In Harringay ward in London, Karen Alexander seeks to regain a seat lost in 2014.
In Carshalton, Chris Williams is defending a Liberal Democrat seat on Sutton Borough Council. The Lib Dem Council had a glowing peer review report recently.
In Cornwall, Maggie Vale is fighting to take a seat from the Conservatives.
Adrian Key is standing in town and district council by-elections in Droitwich in the West Midlands.
If you can help any of these candidates, please do. Details of how to do so can be found here.. Making a few phone calls could make all the difference if you can’t get there in person. Remember, St Julian’s ward was won by a single vote last time and we lost by just 9 on Tuesday. Can you help make the difference and elect two more Lib Dem Councillors? Let’s make some more good news for tomorrow.
* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social
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13 Comments
Lets keep it rolling.
Apparently the Independent candidate was a member of the Labour Party who was selected by the local party, but was ineligible to be the official Labour candidate!
Great news. Does anyone know more details of the Labour decision to stand their candidate as an Independent ? Did Labour run a proper campaign & did they stress that their Candidate was actually Labour ?
Paul, my understanding is she had not been a member long enought to be eligble. She is 18 years of age and her expressed values in her literature are more Lib Dem than Labour IMO. The Labour branch put out a leaflet to members and supporters listing her as the person Labour members and supporters should vote for in the district election and naming Ind candidates whom they should vote for in the town council by-elections on the same day.
@Adrian Sanders: “… naming Ind candidates whom they should vote for in the town council by-elections on the same day.” What happened to these?
Further to this, an account on the LDV forum states: “A fillibuster at the Labour selection meeting in Totnes resulted in no candidate being chosen but an endorsement of the Corbynite independent.. bizarre.. so they lost it..” So was the young independent candidate the Corbynite referred to here?
It is said that Labour Party rules say that candidates for Council must be 19 or over. As Adrian says, the young woman concerned, Alex Mockridge, was only 18. I am also told that she is a young candidate with a bright future.
Alex Mockridge has signed a petition calling for Angela Eagle to resign as an MP.. (see vote Uk forum, local by elections) I guess that puts her in the Momentum camp..
I am more amused at the “Labour standing as Independent” on the Town Council, where 3 Greens and one Independent got in.. Thought that was usually a Tory trick!!
BTW there seem to be more versions of Labour Party rules than sensible Labour Party members at the moment….
Talking about elections see they are still counting in Australia, unbelivably ABC is reporting 91% only counted, what almost 4 weeks after the polling. Think they need to review the process, perhaps go over to electronic counting.
Looking at the history of the ward on The VoteUK Forum, this should have been an easy win for The Greens, Labour took the 3rd place in a 3 Councillor ward. Another piece of evidence for Green decline since 2015 ?
I have been following the election in Australia, I can not really understand it is taking so long in counting the votes. I would expect the counting to take a few days. The urban areas should not take that long. The bigger seats out in the bush would take a bit longer. We can get to Australia in 24 hours, surely ballot boxs can get to the counting centres in a reasonable time. I can understand the Senate Election count taking longer its some form of STV. I think they need to look at their system, like we do !!
The Independent,Alex Mockridge ran a very good campaign with the limited resources available to her, receiving a respectable 21% of the vote. Labour only backed her once she was nominated (I think it was different for the town council candidates). You’d think Labour would be pleased to have such a member; however they are assembling a firing squad.
http://www.plymouthherald.co.uk/labour-launches-inquiry-into-devon-branch-backing-independent-candidates/story-29562151-detail/story.html
We need to get the whole country more like Totnes!