Defectors and by-elections

[lancastrian]

Our Green contributors not appearing to have rushed to answer yes to this poll, what are their opinions on the petitions launched by the Merton Green Party?

[froome]

May 28, 2013 22:23:21 GMT lancastrian said:

Our Green contributors not appearing to have rushed to answer yes to this poll, what are their opinions on the petitions launched by the Merton Green Party?

?

The poll was in March, and I expect most Greens did vote yes then - see various comments made by Green contributors at the time.

I wasn't aware of the Merton petition, so thanks for alerting me to it. If I lived there I would support it. My preference is the position the Scottish Greens take, for defectors to sit as Independents until the next election, which tonyotim outlines early in the thread.

[lancastrian]

My interpretation of the posts was that they do support the Scottish Green position but think the question of the by election should be for the individual representative.

[Tony Otim]

May 29, 2013 11:35:56 GMT lancastrian said:

My interpretation of the posts was that they do support the Scottish Green position but think the question of the by election should be for the individual representative.

That's a fairly accurate summary. My personal opinion is that the Merton Green Party are using ther situation to try and gain political advantage in the same way that all parties have at times. I'm sure we could find cases of local parties of all colours calling for an opponent to resign after a defection. However, I would remain firmly opposed to a policy forcing defectors to resign for reasons others have outlined above.

[anthony]

May 29, 2013 12:00:20 GMT Tony Otim said:

My personal opinion is that the Merton Green Party are using ther situation to try and gain political advantage in the same way that all parties have at times. I'm sure we could find cases of local parties of all colours calling for an opponent to resign after a defection. However, I would remain firmly opposed to a policy forcing defectors to resign for reasons others have outlined above.

The irony being that the only ever Green Party councillor on Merton council was gained through a defection in 2002 . . . I think the recently defunct (politically at least) Merton Green Party will fail to gain any advantage on this. I don't think enough residents care enough, and a couple of stalls outside a library aren't going to garner enough signatures in the right places to force by-elections under UKIP rules. And even if they did, it would be fairly likely that the Green Party candidate would do poorly, rather like at the 2012 by-election in Wimbledon Park.

Edit: thanks Martin for the date of the Lab-to-Green defection.

[martinwhelton]

I think the call for the by-elections must have beeen one of the only things that the Merton Green Party has called for in the last four years. I also don't seem to recall them asking for Paul Barasi to resign when he defected just before the 2002 election from Labour to Green (though it was too near the election for a by-election to take place).

Frankly, I would've have thought other issues would've been of more concern to the Greens then calling for a by-election in two wards where they stand next to no chance of winning. The whole petition isssue is of very little political advantage to them(and many of the public don't care)

[anthony]

Jun 19, 2013 7:50:14 GMT martinwhelton said:

I think the call for the by-elections must have beeen one of the only things that the Merton Green Party has called for in the last four years.

I'd say even longer than that. There's been very little activity since 2006.

[Deleted]

Just thought I'd bump this thread because I'm tired of seeing that spam one.