Local by-election results (27/03/2014) and other thoughts

Ladies and gentlemen, in case you have not already heard, the latest local by-election results involving Green candidates were as follows:

East Ayrshire, Kilmarnock North (1st preference votes): SNP 1334 (45.1%), Lab 1130 (38.2%), Con 430 (14.6%), Green 61 (2.1%).

Fylde, St. John's: Ratepayers 804 (65.7%), Con 205 (16.7%), UKIP 100 (8.2%), Lib Dem 62 (5.1%), Green 53 (4.3%).

Oxfordshire, Chalgrove and Watlington: Con 871 (41.8%), Lib Dem 629 (30.2%), UKIP 311 (14.9%), Lab 159 (7.6%), Green 116 (5.6%).

Sunderland, St. Anne's: Lab 945 (48.1%), UKIP 555 (28.2%), Con 345 (17.6%), Green 120 (6.1%).

It is interesting to note that the Kilmarnock North by-election is the first time the SNP have held or gained a ward in a by-election since 2011. Also notable are the large swing in Fylde from Conservative to Ratepayers' Association, and the significant swing in Chalgrove and Wallington from the Conservatives to the Liberal Democrats.

I was surprised that our vote share decreased in the St. Anne's ward, especially as our candidate Emily Blyth (a notable Sunderland green activist and the fiancee of internationally renowned ecosocialist Derek Wall) is a useful campaigner-I suspect that it is due to UKIP taking protest votes that went to us in this ward last time around.

On other notes, I would like to thank everyone who was able to come down to Westminster to pay their last respects to Tony Benn. We will keep the red flag (and the green flag) flying across the land for the people of Britain for him, and continue our struggle against the wealthy elite that is ruining our nation and the world for that matter.

I finally need to say that ATOS' decision to end its contract to carry out WCAs early does not mean we can let it escape justice for its past crimes against thousands and thousands of people with disabilities. It is in any case the concept of WCAs that need to be scrapped and also that we need to instead find an alternative that can actually help people with disabilities and mental health problems, rather than driving them to suicide as ATOS' actions have done to so many.

Alan.

 

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