While in 2016 we saw more by-election gains than the previous 20 years, and an excellent set of local elections, one thing is clear – you can only win if you stand a candidate.
That’s why ALDC (The Association of Liberal Democrat Campaigners and Councillors) want you to make sure you are asking, both within your own local membership but also more broadly.
One of our top tips is to draw up your list of people who you can ask to stand, from past candidates, deliverers and helpers to school governors and regular attendees at local community meetings.
You also need to think about who is asking and who are the best people to approach. Be sure to call the potential candidates, visit them and persuade them.
However, when asking please make sure you are prepared for the questions that might come about such as what is the time involvement, what do I need to do next. etc.
This is where the excellent LGA and ALDC’s Be A Councillor Guide – it simply explains and answers many of those difficult questions about what is involved. It is important that at every point we are truthful, that getting elected involves a lot of work, and that being a candidate is not always easy but explaining how rewarding it can be.
Of course, we still need paper candidates – a person who is willing to stand for the Liberal Democrats in a ward that is not necessarily being targetted to win. This still involves work to ensure we have someone standing in every ward. The by-election results have not just happened; they have taken a tremendous amount of work. Therefore we need people who are just prepared to stand and not win. Again we just need to make sure we are asking people and going through the proper approval process.
It is worth remembering that to get nominated to stand, you require just 10 signatures from voters in the ward. The quickest method is just to walk down the street with the electoral register and ask people by knocking on doors. Explain the process: “We want to stand a candidate to give voters a choice and we have to collect 10 signatures to get their name on the ballot paper. It doesn’t mean you have to vote for them or that you necessarily support the party.”
Finally, please make sure you let ALDC know where you have a candidate standing this May by filling in this quick form. They can then provide you with help and support.
* ALDC is the Association of Liberal Democrat Councillors and Campaigners
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2 Comments
I fully support thus ALDC view. In addition, however, never normally stand a paper candidate who isn’t willing to serve if unintentionally elected. I have faced circumstances where people have been elected who didn’t expect to and without exception those who really didn’t wish to be elected have resigned quite soon after being elected.
The other thing to remember is not to fall for excuses as to why you should not have a candidate. Pacts are very rare and should only be entered into in exceptional circumstances – and almost never with Labour, who see pacts as a way of getting Labour elected and nothing else – so if we fail to stand a candidate we deny people the chance of supporting the Lib Dems. It is especially important to stand a full slate in multimember seats. If you have only 2 candidates in a 3 member seat, then voters may cast 2 votes for the Lib Dems and then use their third vote against the Lib Dems by voting for another party. When we get STV that won’t be a problem. With first past the post it is.
Candidates who are weak – or who don’t wish to be elected – are not showing any respect to the electorate – and neither is the party that nominates them..