Lib Dems Right Behind Conservatives in East Grinstead & Uckfield

The Liberal Democrats are only two points behind the Conservatives in the new parliamentary constituency of East Grinstead and Uckfield, according to a new poll.

As the general election campaign kicked off, the poll, by Britain Elects and the New Statesman, put Lib Dems on 30.9% and the Conservatives on 32.9%. On the same day, the tactical voting website tactical.vote urged people in East Grinstead and Uckfield to vote Liberal Democrat to defeat the Conservatives.

It raises the prospect of a shock victory for the Liberal Democrats in a seat that had been considered safe for the Tories – and where Conservative minister Mims Davies is standing after moving from Mid Sussex.

Launching his general election campaign, Lib Dem candidate Benedict Dempsey said:

“It is a relief for the country that the general election has finally been called. People are crying out for change, and for a better quality of politics.

“I have been talking to people across the constituency all year. They are desperate for honest, decent, tolerant politics – for reasonable debate even when we disagree.

“I will campaign on the issues that matter to people in East Grinstead, Uckfield and our villages, especially the NHS, Planning and the Environment.

“We want to deliver an extra 8000 GPs so that people can get appointments when they need them, and get our NHS working again. We want to reform planning to give more power to local communities and take it away from big developer corporations. And we want to clean up our rivers by forcing water companies to deliver for the environment before making profit.

“A lot of people have given up on politics – but change is possible. This poll shows that we can defeat the Conservatives in East Grinstead and Uckfield. If people lend me their vote, I will do my best to represent East Grinstead and Uckfield with honesty, tolerance, respect and hard work.”

Note:

The New Statesman poll is available here: Who will win the 2024 general election? - State of the Nation (newstatesman.com)

Tactical.Vote recommendation available here: Tactical voting in East Grinstead and Uckfield | General Election 2024 | tactical.vote