The Independents are on the march!

Western Daily Press, 8 May 2024, p. 19

Now the dust has largely settled after the recent local elections, some reflections are in order. Even the mainstream media has been reporting that disillusionment with, and lack of trust in, the conventional party political system are now at an all-time low – something I regularly hear in my own campaigning conversations here in Stroud.

This phenomenon was clearly evident in last week’s election results. For example, turn-out was very low indeed – a remarkable fact, given that we’re constantly being told how much the voters want change and a new government.

In addition, the number of Independent councillors elected nationwide was up by 69 per cent, from 135 to 228. And the Greens – another non-mainstream party – also increased their total of councillors by 69 per cent, from 107 to 181 No other political party got anywhere near this percentage increase; the next highest increase was Resident Association councillors, with a 30 per cent increase.

Here in Gloucestershire, the Independent candidate, Matthew Randolph, gathered over 10 per cent of the vote in the Police and Crime Commissioner election with virtually no campaigning resources; and in the recent Rochdale by-election, the local independent candidate won more votes than the Labour and Conservative candidates combined.

So it appears that the Independents are on the march! The hope looks bright for a new kind of politics with ever-more independent, free-thinking voices displacing the Punch-and-Judy Show that is the conventional party politics, which so many of us are heartily fed up with. So, watch this space...

Dr Richard House

Stroud, Gloucestershire

https://.com/letter-to-the-editor-voters-show-disdain-for-party-political-system/

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