Twin to win

By Luke Akehurst / @lukeakehurst

In most of the country this has been the first weekend of the short campaign for the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly and local government elections. Labour members have been busy canvassing and leafleting in the first almost nationwide opportunity to land an electoral blow on the coalition. Not only do these elections provide an opportunity to win power in many parts of the country and start demonstrating the practical difference Labour makes in power; they are also an opportunity to rebuild our base of councillors, which is a proven organisational driver of future parliamentary victories; and to establish a narrative about Labour’s nationwide comeback.

But there’s no need to feel left out if you are a Labour member in London or in one of the small number of unitary areas that don’t have elections on May 5th. You can still help Labour win.

A fallow year in the electoral cycle isn’t an opportunity to sit back and take it easy and then watch the results as though they were a spectator sport. It’s an opportunity to show solidarity with comrades in areas that do have elections, and to make a strategic impact by twinning with them. Help from outside is a massive boost to the morale of a local Party, and is often paid back with reciprocal twinning visits. It is good to feel part of a truly national organisation and build links with fellow activists round the country.

The fact that London in particular doesn’t have elections is potentially very important as the London Labour Party has a massively higher membership than any other region (over 45,000), but is located within easy travelling distance of the South East and Eastern regions where Labour gaining control of any councils could be one of the iconic stories of the night, and of Leicester South where we have a parliamentary by-election.

If you live in London or another area without elections please:

· Try to schedule at least one weekend’s campaigning before May 5th in an area that has elections.

· Book May 5th as annual leave from work if you are able to, so that you can travel to an area with elections to help on Polling Day.

· If your CLP is not already directing help towards the CLP they are officially twinned with (for instance in our case in Hackney it is Thurrock) contact your regional party to check where you should be going (for London members call 0845 850 0588 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or e-mail london@new.labour.org.uk).

· If you have Labour Party contacts or friends or family living in an area with elections why not combine visiting them with helping the local party there?

If you are in an area with elections and would appreciate some extra help between now and May 5th please feel free to use the comments on this blog post to advertise when and where people can come to support your campaign.