Oldham East & Saddleworth

Last weekend I spent a few days helping Elwyn Watkins and the team in the Oldham East & Saddleworth by-election.

It was exciting to be helping out at a by-election again – and the OES team are really fired up! Arriving at Greenfield Station on Saturday I could see loads of Elwyn posters lining the road – it seems they are everywhere!

Over the few days I was there I helped out in the HQ printing, folding and bundling literature. I was up for 24 hours straight on the first day – as I helped out with the overnight printing. I also got the chance to go out on the doorsteps and talk to some local voters. I really enjoy talking to people and finding out what they think. Lots of people are far more chatty than you would imagine – you always worry that people might slam the door in your face when they see you are canvassing for an election – but people were happy to talk.

It was strange seeing the difference between what I had read in the newspapers and what people were actually saying on the ground. Some of the polls said we are falling behind (with the Tories in a distant third) – but I found it’s much closer between us and Labour than the news has been saying. The Tories are definitely in third though!

Several voters who are normally Conservative voters told me that they were backing Elwyn as he’s a local man. They are fed up with Labour tricks to win, and want someone who will actually fight for them. It was really heartening to hear that – as I could see what an effort Elwyn and the team have made.

Some of the Labour voters were the same. Although many had made up their minds already, a good number of them told me they were confused about what to do. They normally support Labour, but they felt that Elwyn was best to represent them too. It’s going to be a close fight!

The Lib Dem voters were obviously annoyed that Labour has dragged the name of Oldham East & Saddleworth through the mud – and will be glad to elect a Lib Dem MP so this whole saga can be put behind them.

Elwyn made a short speech one evening after the campaign team meeting – talking about how we are putting up a good fight and thanking people for coming and helping. He thanked the people like me who have come from around the country to lend a hand – but he saved the biggest thanks for his local campaign team who have been working in the community since well before the General Election.

It’ll be interesting to see what happens – I have put a whole pound on a Lib Dem victory – that’s double what I normally bet! I think it’s going to be a tight race – but I think that Elwyn and the team deserve to win after all the work they have put in.

Winter Reading

I have been trying to read more books recently. I read a lot of blogs and news, but struggle to find time for other reading. In December I read up about the formation of the Coaliton Government: ‘22 Days in May‘ and ‘5 Days to Power‘. There did seem to be a reasonable optimisim in forming the coalition, and the deal with Labour didn’t seem like it was ever going to materialise. It’ll be interesting to see how the coalition holds together in 2011 – and how they deal with new problems not covered by the agreement.

I have also just finished Tony Blair’s ‘A Journey‘, accompanied by Adam Boulton’s review of Blair’s time in office: ‘Tony’s Ten Years‘. I wanted to understand his rise to power, and the reforms that he was trying to accomplish before Iraq overshadowed his tenure. I wasn’t too political before 2005, so these books did add to my knowledge. I’m following it up by reading Michael Barber’s ‘Instruction to Deliver‘  – a review of getting things done in Tony Blair’s Government.

Time permitting, I hope to get through Paddy Ashdown’s ‘Swords and Plowshares‘ and Mark Oaten’s ‘Coalition‘ before the holiday is out.

I have been reading some of these on the Kindle app on my Mac and Phone. I am considering getting a full Kindle, but I’m not sure if the benefit is worth the price thanks to the apps I already have. I also joined the Mitchell Library, which I now live quite near to. Hopefully it will save me a lot of money in the new year!

Winning: Jo Swinson re-elected

After several years of hard work, Jo Swinson was re-elected as the MP for East Dunbartonshire. I was proud to have been the Constituency Organiser for this campaign. It was a good result for us here – as Jo was returned despite a tough fight from Labour across Scotland.

The full results were:

Jo Swinson (LD)  –  18,551
Mary Galbraith (Lab) – 16,367
Mark Nolan (Con) – 7,431
Iain White (SNP) – 5,054
James Beeley (UKIP) – 545

Majority     2,184
Turnout     75.2

Thank you to everyone who came forward to help during the campaign. Hundreds of volunteers gave their time and money to make sure that East Dunbartonshire kept their strong local champion. It was hard work, but worth it!

Bearsden South By-Election

Ashay Ghai has won the Bearsden South by-election for the East Dunbartonshire Lib Dems.

The final vote after redistribution of the Labour and SNP votes was: LD 1770, Con 1499.

You can see further coverage on Lib Dem Voice, and in the Bearsden Herald.

It was great to be organising for such an enthusiastic team of volunteers. A lot of work was put into the victory, and I’m sure a lot more work is to come over the next few years.

Bishopbriggs South By-Election

The Bishopbriggs South by-election results are in. The Lib Dems have moved from 6th in 2007 to 3rd at this election. We were only 21 redistributed votes away from being second.

The first preference votes were:

• SSP    96
• Cons    500
• SNP    837
• Lib    736
• Lab    1401

On the third redistribution we had 928 votes to the SNP’s 949.

We were the only party to increase their actual number of first preference votes since 2007, and our vote share rose by 9.5%.

It was good to work with our candidate, Alastair McPhee, who ran a positive and energetic campaign. These results look good for the future of our Council Group.