Liberal Democrat Somerset surge continues
May’s local elections have cemented the Liberal Democrat’s position as the strongest challengers in Somerset, following a resounding Somerset Council by-election success and running the Conservatives closest among votes cast in Somerset for the election of the Avon & Somerset Police & Crime commissioner.
The Liberal Democrats, who hold a strong majority on Somerset Council, increased their lead over the Conservatives in the traditionally Conservative division of Mendip South, when Rob Reed defeated Conservative candidate and former Somerset Council Leader Ken Maddock, while Labour claimed only 5% of the votes cast, earning just 139 votes.
In May 2022 the Liberal Democrats soared to take control of Somerset Council, winning 61 of the 110 seats up for grabs, including in the key division of Burnham-On-Sea, and in three by-elections since the Lib Dems have gained a further seat from the Conservatives and further increased their majorities in two divisions. The Lib Dems at Somerset Council are the largest elected group of Lib Dems in the country!
The recent Police and Crime Commissioner in Avon & Somerset election resulted in the Liberal Democrats receiving 21,369 votes in Somerset, with only the Conservatives polling more as Labour finished a distant third.
The number of votes recorded for the Liberal Democrats in the 2024 PCC elections is a 26% increase on 2021, while the Conservatives’ vote numbers dropped by 35% with Labour’s vote numbers only increasing by 10%.
Labour’s Clare Moody was elected after a dominant win in the Bristol region.
Claire Sully, MP Candidate for the new Bridgwater, Burnham and Highbridge seat and Deputy Chair of Somerset Council Lib Dems Group, said:
“Lib Dems are the only alternative to the Conservatives in Somerset. We are the majority group at Somerset Council in contrast to Labour, with just 5 seats out of 110. We speak for the people in the county who have had enough of 14 years of Conservative failure.”
For Bridgwater, Burnham-On-Sea and surrounding villages there is just one clear alternative to the inept and lacklustre Conservatives, and that’s Claire Sully and the Liberal Democrats.