Getting Julie elected?

Its been some time since I last blogged.  A combination of being very busy in my role as Deputy Leader at Allerdale and simple inertia.


A few months ago I organised a hustings event within the local party for our wannabe Euro Candidates.  I was both excited and pleased when eight candidates indicated they would turn up on the day and I guess members of the Constituency Party were surprised as well because we had a good turn out on the night.  There was a slight hitch at the beginning of the event when I had a phone call from Julie Ward to say she was lost somewhere in the town and could not find the venue and she had another candidate with her.  Thankfully one of our helpful members went to find her and we had a great hustings event.   Julie was referred to a few times after the hustings as "that la'al hippy body". This was more to do with her own description of herself as "working in the arts" and also not looking remotely like a 'career' politician.  In fact this was her very attempt at getting elected for anything.


The hustings were important because there came a day last summer when Labour members in the North West voted for their preferences and Julie surprised a few people(including herself)  by being placed fourth on the list out of eight candidates.  I met her again a few weeks later when she arrived in the town to take part in a bedroom tax protest sleep out.  I remember casually saying to her that she would become an MEP.


If you are a political election geek like me you will know that getting four of your candidates elected out of a eight member seat is quite a tall order and privately many in the party were simply hoping to build on the two elected member position by gaining another seat. However I have never lacked ambition and I always think in elections you should go flat out to win as much as possible.


Months go by and then Arlene McCarthy our existing MEP and number one on the list makes the shock announcement that she will retire at the election. Suddenly Julie is number three on the list and it then becomes very real that she WILL be an MEP.


Since that day lots of things have happened.  I have offered to manage the EU campaign for the area and have become the sub agent.  Julie moved into my house this week so that she can concentrate on election campaigning in Cumbria and to cut down on her need to travel back and forwards to Wearside where she lives.  My house has become the hub of the election campaign for the North West in Cumbria.  We also have Jon Luke staying here - he is unemployed and doing work experience and tomorrow he is going with Julie to the North West Labour Party EU media launch in Manchester.  Caroline Flint is attending.  I have told him to take a 'selfie' with Caroline and post it on the blog that he has begun.


Is Julie going to be elected? Absolutely yes!  Are we going to get our forth member elected? We will try our very best.