In November party members will be voting to elect our next Party President. At Lib Dem Voice we welcome posts from each of the candidates – one to launch their candidature plus a maximum of one per week during the actual campaign.

A million years ago – during the coalition years – when I had the honour of serving as President of our party, I saw first-hand just how vital that job is. The President doesn’t set policy or lead the party in Parliament, but they provide a different kind of leadership: to keep the party grounded in our values, connected to our members, and focused on our purpose. That’s why I’m backing Josh Babarinde to be our next Party President.

Josh is exactly what we need right now. At a time when our country is wrestling with the toxic pull of populism, and when too many voters feel let down by politics altogether, Josh offers hope, energy, and a plan.

He’s a doer. Always has been. His work to win back Eastbourne – a place Josh never tires of telling me is the sunniest place in the UK – reflects his effectiveness as a campaigner. His work before entering Parliament setting up a social enterprise focussed on supporting young people out of crime, for which he was awarded an OBE before he was 30 is remarkable. Lots of politicians talk the talk about helping young people, Josh took action and changed lives.  

But when he does talk, he’s also pretty good at it. When I see him on TV, my social media timeline or hear him on the radio, he can connect with people. In Parliament, I’ve seen him use his voice not for landing cheap soundbites, but to push through real change — like closing dangerous loopholes in domestic abuse laws. He’s a winner with a purpose. 

Not all of these things have been party political – but they embody what inspirational, Liberal, community politics can look like.

As President, Josh will be a voice for members. He’s been a Vice Chair for the Racial Diversity Campaign, a candidate in a Labour facing seat, a councillor and now an MP in a former Conservative seat, and isn’t shy about calling out Reform’s cheap populism. He has seen our party from many angles and knows how important our grassroots are to who we are – and how we win.

And I like his plan – he wants to equip every Liberal Democrat with the tools to organise their communities against populism, champion our values in the media and make sure we’re cutting through with bold messages. He gets that with votes at 16 for Westminster elections on the horizon we need to start building the strategy now to connect with the youngest voters across the country, and that we need to diversify our party so we reflect the communities we seek to serve. He is a realist: with local government reorganisation we are at risk of losing the expertise of hundreds of councillors whose seats will vanish. We have to retain that talent and celebrate it.

Serving you as President of our party is something I will never forget. It is a unique and special role that matters. We need someone who has a plan, can communicate, inspire, and isn’t shy to put in the hard work to deliver results. 

That’s why I’m backing Josh. And I hope you will too.

* Tim Farron is Liberal Democrat Spokesperson on Agriculture and MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale.