Green Party And Lib Dems Form Election Pact in Chiswick

Turnham Green ward likely to become Labour 'battlefield' as fight for votes begins

The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats have formed an electoral pact in the borough of Hounslow which has seen them agree to stand down candidates in each other's target seats.

As a result the Greens will not be contesting Turnham Green ward in the local elections on 3 May and the Liberal Democrats will not have any candidates in the Brentford seat.

A statement issued by the two parties jointly says that the decision is a protest against the "deeply flawed first-past-the post system". They say it disadvantages smaller political parties and results in an unrepresentative local Council.

It is believed that the move is also based on a calculation that Turnham Green is the most winnable ward in the Chiswick area where currently the Conservatives hold all nine. Three new candidates are defending Turnham Green for the Conservatives whereas other wards have long-standing incumbents who may attract a personal vote. Turnham Green ward also voted to remain in the EU by a substantial majority and has a significant proportion of EU citizens. The latter are allowed to vote in local elections unlike general elections and the EU Referendum.

Labour Party members in Chiswick hope to capitalise on potential extra votes in the ward and have been out canvassing over fifteen times in the past few weeks. They believe the Green's decision not to field a candidate in Turnham Green could see the party win those extra votes and give them a fighting chance of having some of their candidates elected.

"Turnham Green is going to be a Labour battlefield" said one Labour insider. " We are getting pledges of Labour votes from people who feel it is time for a change."

In the General Election last year, in a shock turnaround, the Conservative vote in the the three Chiswick wards (Turnham Green, Homefields and Riverside) collapsed and Labour won over half the votes in each, a swing of over 18%. In the 2015 election, Labour had held about 34% of the vote in Riverside, with Turnham Green and Homefield at around 32%.

In Turnham Green the total Labour vote was 2591 votes, the Conservatives won 2203 and the Lib Dems 365.

You can remind yourself of the General Election results here.

In the previous local election in May 2014 the Conservatives won all three seats in Turnham Green ward.

The Lib Dems and Green Party announced their pact on (Saturday 7 April) saying that "the deeply flawed first past the post (FPTP) voting system, favours the two largest parties in Hounslow and penalises alternative parties."

They said they had taken action because they believed it was the best way to" break through the Blue/Red ceiling which the FPTP voting system inflicts on Hounslow."

"Both parties agree that Hounslow Council is less representative and its decision-making is poorer for not having the benefit of Liberal Democrat or Green voices in the Council Chamber, but this electoral pact do not imply support for each other’s policies locally or nationally.
Both parties would also like to thank all those voters who voted for them in the past in these wards.

"Both parties also hope that our supporters who wanted to vote Green in Turnham Green or LibDem in Brentford will agree with us that the constraints of the electoral system have forced us to make some difficult choices to get more diverse voices on Hounslow Council. Both parties will continue to fight hard to change the outdated electoral system."

One local Conservative told Chiswickw4.com that he could not see any sense in the Green/Lib Dem decision not to field a candidate in Turnham Green. The decision makes Turnham Green a more marginal ward with everything to play for. There are 8,304 registered voters in the ward.

April 8, 2018