Elections - 2nd/3rd July 2014

[East Anglian Lefty]

Yes, but that's how you win seats in areas where a local party is weak. You still need a degree of residual acceptance for people to vote for the person rather than against the party.

[Merseymike]

Jul 6, 2014 9:50:07 GMT East Anglian Lefty said:

Yes, but that's how you win seats in areas where a local party is weak. You still need a degree of residual acceptance for people to vote for the person rather than against the party.

Particularly in areas where Labour voters have voted tactically for years. Skipton has always had some radical liberals like the late Claire Brookes who a Labour supporter wouldn't have had too many problems voting for - indeed, until 2011 hadn't stood in the ward for years.
It may well have been the case that voters recognised that the County seat wasn't really viable (Skipton North is not natural Labour territory - its Yorkshire 'posh', so together it wasn't going to be won at County level) but that the West ward could be won

[The Bishop]

I remember Claire Brooks standing in Lancaster at the 1987 GE (she also spoke at quite a few anti-nuclear meetings around that time)

"Animated" would be a good way of describing her

[Merseymike]

Jul 6, 2014 13:11:04 GMT The Bishop said:

I remember Claire Brooks standing in Lancaster at the 1987 GE (she also spoke at quite a few anti-nuclear meetings around that time)

"Animated" would be a good way of describing her

Yes, I think that is one way of putting it. She spoke at breakneck speed at the top of her voice without stopping. A real character!

[middleenglander]

Craven, Skipton West
-2011 Labour vote 250 (21.8%) *
-2012 Labour vote 218 (21.0%) *
-2014 Labour vote 186 (24.0%) at by-election *

Craven, Skipton North
- 2011 Labour vote 180 (12.1%)
- 2012 Labour vote 112 (9.5%)

Craven, Skipton North + Skipton West
- 2011 Labour votes 430 (16.3%)
- 2012 Labour vote 330 (14.9%)

North Yorkshire, Skipton West
- 2009 Labour vote 272 (11.6%) *
- 2013 Labour vote 234 (11.7%) *
- 2014 Labour voye 181 (10.9%) at by-election

* Labour candidate Peter Madeley

[Deleted]

Jul 6, 2014 15:04:12 GMT middleenglander said:

Craven, Skipton West
-2011 Labour vote 250 (21.8%) *
-2012 Labour vote 218 (21.0%) *
-2014 Labour vote 186 (24.0%) at by-election *

Craven, Skipton North
- 2011 Labour vote 180 (12.1%)
- 2012 Labour vote 112 (9.5%)

Craven, Skipton North + Skipton West
- 2011 Labour votes 430 (16.3%)
- 2012 Labour vote 330 (14.9%)

North Yorkshire, Skipton West
- 2009 Labour vote 272 (11.6%) *
- 2013 Labour vote 234 (11.7%) *
- 2014 Labour voye 181 (10.9%) at by-election

* Labour candidate Peter Madeley

Yeah - the labour vote is hardly a break through by any means. Its a very split opposition (4 way) that has made it seem as such.

[Merseymike]

But we are going to be seeing more of them in the future, as politics becomes more fractured - however, my point stands - only the District seat of West is obviously winnable, and now Labour have taken it the tiresome refrain of 'ANYOTHERPARTY can't win here' accompanied by a little graph or pie chart won't be applicable. So it may be easier to get Labour-minded voters in Skipton to actually vote Labour in future.

To put it in perspective - this is the first Labour win in Craven since 1996, and there were precious few before as this was in one of the parliamentary seats the Liberals nearly took in the 1970's, so voting Liberal/Lib Dem to keep out the Tory is something they have been urged to do for a fair while