Letter: Results Underline the Need To Kick National Parties Out of Local Politics

Published on: 11 May, 2021
Updated on: 11 May, 2021

By David Roberts

The unsung story in these elections is the rise and rise of Independent, local parties.

GGG’s victory in Send shows that, after six years on Guildford council, it remains a growing force, tapping into increasing local concern about over-development that our councils are still failing to address.

In Shere Division an outstandingly good GGG candidate came within 78 votes of beating an unsuitable Tory one. This was mainly the fault of the Green Party who foolishly put up a paper candidate, splitting the green vote and letting in the Tory as widely predicted.

This underlines GGG’s argument that we need to kick national parties out of local politics.

Tory Bob Hughes scraped home on a high turnout and much lower vote than last time, thanks also to his false pledge to extend the AONB to Send, a fiction to which residents will now hold him to account.

Responses to Letter: Results Underline the Need To Kick National Parties Out of Local Politics

George Potter Reply

May 11, 2021 at 10:26 am

Is anyone seriously arguing, after all the vitriol and leaflets and arguments in the press, that the voters of Shere didn’t understand the difference between the Greens and GGG?

The arrogance on display really is breathtaking. No one is entitled to the votes of anyone. Votes do not belong to any party. They have to be earned.

But what is the response of GGG to defeat? Is it to lick their wounds and to determine to work even harder to win the seat next time? Nope. Instead, they’re angrily lashing out and blaming another party for daring to stand, for daring to offer a different alternative and for stealing “their” votes.

Political defeat is bruising and horrible. Missing out by a few dozen votes is gutwrenching. But there’s a right and a wrong way to respond to it. The right way is with humility and determination. The wrong way is with arrogance and blame.

If the latter is GGG’s attitude in defeat then perhaps they deserved to lose?

George Potter is the Lib Dem county councillor for Guildford East