On the Cowdenbeath by-election and other thoughts

Although we did not put forward our own candidate for the Cowdenbeath (Holyrood) by-election, I will nevertheless analyse it. In case you did not already hear, the results of it were as follows:

Alex Rowley (Lab) 11,192 (55.8%), Natalie McGarry (SNP) 5,704 (28.4%), Dave Dempsey (Con) 1,893 (9.45%), Denise Baykal (UKIP) 610 (3.0%), Jade Holden (Lib Dem) 425 (2.1%), Stuart Graham (Victims' Final Right) 187 (0.9%), James Trolland (SDA) 51 (0.25%).

Over the past year, much of the protest vote the SNP gained in 2011 and 2012 to bolster its existing vote base has been falling away, even though there is still strong support for Scottish Independence in many areas. It is not surprising Labour held in this by-election; it was the only Fife seat they did not lose to the SNP in 2011. 

It is not all that surprising that the Liberal Democrat vote fell even further from its weak position (it almost halved!), particularly with the sexual harassment allegations about Lord Rennard and Portsmouth South MP Mike Hancock having been prominent news in British media for at least the last week. What I found surprising was that they were pushed into fifth place by UKIP, which is notoriously weak in almost all of Scotland.

The hopeless Scottish Democratic Alliance leader,James Trolland, can at least crow about having received more votes in this by-election than he has in his last three attempts put together (Aberdeen Donside and two Glasgow council by-elections).

In case you ask, I have not covered the two local by-elections that occurred at the same time as neither featured a Green candidate.

I would also like to say that given that the average salary in the UK is £22,000 per year, our MPs, who earn three times this salary per year, should not be receiving taxpayer-subsidised catering at discount prices, and certainly not for rare items most of us do not have access to. I think MPs would find it easier if they just showed some restraint on their spending and tastes.

Finally, I hope we do manage to stand in the Wythenshawe and Sale East by-election in the end, and this time with our rising support we might save our electoral deposit of £500.

Regards, Alan.

 

 

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