local elections

[lucydogz]

Was anyone else surprised about how badly (given how badly things are going for the government) Labour did last night?
I'm in Bristol West, and the party members were constantly going out to Swindon for canvassing, plus they had several visits from Jeremy (perhaps that was the mistake) Which doesn't seem to have paid off.
I think part of the problem, speaking not as a member, but as the partner of an active member, is that Labour is boyant in terms of local membership of the party, but they lose sight of the fact that that doesn't mean that voters see the party as an attractive prospect.
I'd be interested to hear what others thought.

[kikashi]

I think often people vote a bit differently in council elections than how they would vote in an election. What makes a good government or MP isn't always the same as what people want from their council - probably why LIb Dems do better ion council elections than the GE

In Brighton the Greens took control of the council a few years back and people were very unhappy with their administration (constant bin strikes, no moves to increase types of recycling etc) and voted them out at the next council elections but still voted overwhelming for Caroline Lucas in the Pavilion ward (central) in the next general election.

In Wandsworth, I can't see Labour winning.The council tax is about a third of what I pay well outside of London and is the lowest in the country. Council tax payers there certainly don't want to mess with that set up.

Some pundits are saying that the Tories increased their council seats in Barnet (N. London) as there is a large Jewish community there who are very worried about the rise of anti semitism.

I don't know the local issues/demographic in Bristol West - who previously controlled the council and were residents content?

[lucydogz]

yes, there's a tweet that Owen Jones put out of him and Eddie Izzard canvassing in Wandsworth, which obviously didn't do any good as Labour lost there.
The election wasn't here, but in Swindon, which I don't know much about, except that Labour only got one council seat, which seems a bit surprising, given the energy put into campaigning by Labour

[kikashi]

Owen Jones and Edie Izzard - no wonder voters (especially women) were turned off.