2006-05-05 Green

Local Election news

Green gain in Over Stroud (where?) ward in the District Council elections yesterday, means we now have 5 councillors out of 51. Presumably a gain from Lib Dems? I'm not sure.

Our ward (Slade) wasn't voting this year.

Conservatives gained councillors in Wotton and Cainscross.

Bizarre situation in Cainscross, with 7 candidates standing for 2 seats, 2 from each of the 3 mainstream parties and 1 Green. One of the Labour candidates held their seat, and one of the Conservatives gained a seat from Labour. Now, I know you're voting for individuals, not the party /in theory/, but I would have thought that those who voted Labour would have voted for /both/ Labour candidates? And ditto for the Tories?

Perhaps some voters thought one cross was enough effort for one day. Or maybe lots of people put one vote for a Tory/Labour candidate and one vote for the Green? And the single votes were disproportionately for one candidate rather than another? Weird. Or maybe there are personality issues or clear policy differences between the two candidates? You would have thought in modern politics these things would be ironed out for public consumption.

Details from BBC Gloucestershire to help explain what I mean:

• Cainscross*

Sylvia Jean BRIDGLAND - Liberal Democrat - 254
Jason Owen BULLINGHAM - Conservative - 584
Laurence CARMICHAEL - Conservative - 664 *
Karon CROSS - Labour - 733 *
Andrew Bruce FISK - Liberal Democrat - 251
Helen ROYALL - Green Party - 375
Thomas Hugh WILLIAMS - Labour - 603

Conservative Gain
Labour Hold

Note – 2 seats up for election

Turn out: 35.33%

If I were Thomas Williams I'd be quite miffed, I think. If the 1336 Labour votes had been evenly split, Cross and Williams would each have had 668 votes, just enough to put Carmichael into third place. I am assuming that most Labour voters voted for both Lab candidates, but obviously a large number voted for just one of them, and then presumably either the Green candidate or nobody. I wonder if there are some people out there who voted (quite within their rights!) once for Labour and once for the Conservatives? Or once for Labour and once for the Lib Dems?

My old mate Miranda Williams stood for Labour in The Stanleys. I assume it's the same Miranda Williams.

Elsewhere, a good day for the Greens, picking up seats in Lewisham, Norwich (where we now have 9 councillors), Sheffield (gain from LD in Central ward!), Oxford, Bristol (for the first time) ... and a larger share of the vote than the Conservatives in Liverpool. Full details from BBC News.

In Cheltenham my mum's friend Martin Hale (Labour) lost his seat in Oakley ward after what must be donkey's years as a councillor, and the Tories gained Up Hatherley and Warden Hill.

PS According to Stroud District Council, Over Stroud is the bit between Stonehouse and Painswick including Randwick, Whiteshill, Cashes Green?, Pitchcombe etc.

politics stroud green