Well the roller-coaster is over. It was a baptism of fire to say the least and I am pleased to say that not only did we survive we did relatively well! Across the UK the Lib Dems received a battering on all levels. Many people will question as to why but the prevailing opinion is that the national UK scene affected us however c'est la vie. We are in coalition to do what we think is right for the people of the UK, at the moment we are not popular but making tough decisions rarely leads to popularity. The deficit we are dealing with is a more pressing issues than appreciated! We will recover and do better next time, in Alyn and Deeside we are blessed with a hard working party base, superb county councillors and a sense of calm that means we wont panic next time!
I am pleased to say that the majority of the people I have dealt with in the campaign from other parties are now counted as friends. I would especially like to mention Shane Brennan from Plaid, John Bell from the Tories and Steve Tattum from Labour. Whilst we have been political enemies for the last 3 months they have acted with nothing but chivalry, kindness and support for the other campaigns (mine included). Its nice to see that whilst our ideology divides us we are still all committed to improving the lives for people in Wales. Well done to the Labour, Plaid and Tory campaigns and I look forward to locking horns with you again!
The only sour notes from the campaign came on count day. The first from the BNP. It was a shame to see a relatively calm campaign spoiled by an argument with a PC activist. It would appear that manners are not part of the BNP ethos and I was glad to see the returning officer take the situation in hand! The final poor show was the heckling of the BNP candidate from the floor during the declaration speeches. I abhor the BNP and what they stand for however in the (misquoted) words of Voltaire: 'I defend to the death your right to say it!'. I am sure there were people who disagreed with me however they were polite enough to let me verbally 'bang my drum'!
Across North Wales, the Liberal Democrats did (almost) buck the trend of the predicted collapse. When you compare all the constituencies with the last WAG elections vote share the top 4 were all in North Wales! We 'protected' our share of the vote better than EVERYWHERE in Wales and for this we are all eternally grateful to not only the individual local parties but also Rachael who came up from Cardiff to coordinate our campaigns. Special mentions go to Mike, Brian and Bruce who all INCREASED their share of the vote from the last WAG election. In such trying times this is a testament to their abilities and when they do get elected in the future, Wales will be all the better for it.
Wrexham and Alyn & Deeside both finished 3rd, which again is worth celebrating considering that 29 constituencies finished 4th or lower. Whilst it may seem oddly self serving to congratulate my own campaign it is worth pointing out that it was literally fought on a shoe string with a limited number of helpers. To get the thousands of leaflets out, be in the paper most weeks, and to move from 4th to 3rd is all down to Secret Agent Bex, my parents, Little Wifey and my very own master Yoda, Paul Brighton. I am so grateful to everyone who assisted in whatever way they did. I love you all!
Final big ups go to Michele in Delyn and Rhys in Arfon. Both of these superb candidates were really up against it and considering the aforementioned national situation they shone. Michele considering her limited resources managed to juggle supporting her daughter through her exams, starting a new job and fighting an election campaign. Well done Michele, you are a star! Rhys had a similar situation but also had to contend with fighting a seat far from home whilst being a student. Watch out for Rhys, the official Pete prediction is that he will go far in Liberal politics and we are all the stronger for having him!
We will dust ourselves down and live to fight again, next time we will put into practice the lessons that we learned over the previous campaign. With our new elected AM Aled Roberts heading the fight in North Wales we are certainly on the up. By the next elections, people will have returned to our fold, of this I am certain. We are the only party that balances being socially responsible whilst also being fiscally astute. Well done to all the thousands of Lib Dems across the UK who fought for their constituents and unfortunately didn't win. We will come back stronger and rest assured I will be there again standing shoulder to shoulder with you!
Pete Williams
Flintshire Liberal Democrat Spokesperson
Bravo! Well done Pete and well said!
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