The Harrogate and Knaresborough Liberal Democrats are to restart their process to choose a prospective parliamentary candidate.
The party had begun moves to find someone to oppose Conservative Andrew Jones at the next general election.
But the process will be re-run after the national Lib Dems upgraded Harrogate and Knaresborough to a target seat.
Local members participated in a first selection in June and July. But a recent email to party members, seen by the Stray Ferret, said:
“Before the results of our PPC selection had been announced, we were notified that Harrogate and Knaresborough has been recognised as a target seat.
“This is great news and something that the local party executive have been working towards. However, this has implications for the selection of a PPC.”
Conservative Andrew Jones has represented Harrogate and Knaresborough since 2010.
Read more:
- Sir Ed Davey: Lib Dems will target Harrogate and Knaresborough as key seat
- Andrew Jones MP defends government response to energy crisis
The letter goes on to say that every PPC in a target seat “must be selected through a more robust selection process” and therefore the current selection process had been “curtailed”.
The email adds further information will be sent in “due course”.
David Goode, chair of the Harrogate and Knaresborough Lib Dems, said
“We have been recognised as a target seat and this is fantastic news. This is the result of months of work by our local campaigners and councillors.
“The local party started the process of selecting a parliamentary candidate earlier this summer. News of their target seat status means the process will now begin again.
“We will have to kick start a new selection process, in line with party rules. This is just something we must do but it will not detract from our campaign. ”
Local election success
At the local elections in May, the party won eight of the 13 North Yorkshire County Council seats in Harrogate and Knaresborough. It won 11,907 votes compared to the Conservatives’ 11,103.
However, the Tories won 47 of the 90 seats across the county to retain control.
Jubilant Liberal Democrats in Harrogate and Knaresborough celebrate the local election results.
At the last general election in 2019, the Lib Dems increased their share of the vote in the constituency by 12 percentage points and reduced Conservative Andrew Jones’s majority to 9,675 votes. But Mr Jones has held the seat since 2012.
