The local election results came in on Friday and though they were mixed overall, there was a lot to celebrate. Wealden is now less blue (and Hailsham in particular a lot more orange!) with Liberal Democrat Steve Murphy being elected by a large margin as the new East Sussex County Councillor for Hailsham Market division, while the town's popular Lib Dem mayor Paul Holbrook comfortably won the District Council by-election in Hailsham North. We were also pleased that Green Party County Council candidate Georgia Taylor was elected in Forest Row & Groomsbridge division (where the Lib Dems did not stand this time) - the first time Wealden has had a Green County Councillor.
The Lib Dem candidates standing for election in the East Sussex County County divisions of Uckfield North and Uckfield South with Framfield are Tim Murray and Chris Bowers, respectively. Last Saturday they both attended an outdoor protest meeting organised by residents regarding an ongoing issue in Uckfield - swarming flies that have been plaguing residents for the past couple of years.
The countdown to the local elections is on, with under two weeks left until polling day on Thursday May 6th so this is a good time to profile our candidates.
Today we turn the spotlight on James Partridge, our Liberal Democrat County Council candidate standing in the division of Crowborough North & Jarvis Brook. Having recently retired as a senior partner in the world's oldest law firm, James joined the Liberal Democrats, determined to channel his time and energy into opposing the policies of increasingly right-wing national and local governments. "Even before the COVID-19 pandemic struck, right wing politicians at all levels of government were betraying the poorest in society, over and over again," he says. "I was increasingly appalled and felt I couldn't continue to just watch from the side-lines."
