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Jul 2024
Greens say results reinforce the need for voting reform
Arnold Warneken did not sugarcoat his words when asked for his reaction to the local Green Party results.
Nationally the Greens increased their number of MPs from one to four. But locally it was, Mr Warneken admitted, a bad night. The party finished fourth in Wetherby and Easingwold, which he contested, fifth in Skipton and Ripon and fifth in Harrogate and Knaresborough.
The party had targeted Wetherby and Easingwold, which made its 8.7% share of the vote there particularly disappointing.
Harrogate and Knaresborough candidate Shan Oakes polled 3.4% and lost her deposit. She and fellow activists in the constituency went door-knocking in Wetherby and Easingwold to support Mr Warneken. Their campaigning in Harrogate and Knaresborough consisted of little more than one round of leaflet dropping and attending hustings. In Skipton and Ripon, Andy Brown recorded 6.4% of the vote.
By contrast, Reform UK finished third in all three constituencies and achieved a notable surge. Mr Warneken said:
As a party, nationally we have done very well. Locally, we have had an uphill struggle against Reform and tactical voting.
A number of people have said in their hearts they wanted to vote Green but they wanted to get rid of the Conservatives so they voted tactically instead.
It’s a disappointing result because we have such a good team and we put a lot into it. We need political reform for us to have a real voice.
Ms Oakes, who was the only female candidate of the 21 to stand in the three constituencies, said:
We’ve got to bludgeon Labour into getting proportional representation. The current system is just incredibly unfair.
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