2018 Lewisham East by-election
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Lewisham East constituency | |||
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 Location of Lewisham East within London | |||
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A by-election is expected in the UK Parliament constituency of Lewisham East following the resignation of Labour MP Heidi Alexander.[1][2] This is expected to be the second by-election held during the 57th UK Parliament, which was elected at the 2017 general election.
Background
On 8 May 2018, sitting MP Heidi Alexander announced her appointment as London Deputy Mayor for Transport, a role that required her to quit the House of Commons. The following day (9 May) she was appointed Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead, an office of profit under the Crown, which disqualified her from sitting as an MP (Members of the House of Commons may not resign). She had served as the MP for Lewisham East for eight years, having first been elected at the 2010 general election. She served in Labour's Shadow Cabinet until 2016, and was an active campaigner for Britain to remain in the single market after Brexit. She was critical of Labour's leadership, describing it as "dysfunctional".[3]
The Lewisham East constituency has been represented by MPs from the Labour Party since 1992, and is currently a safe seat for the party.[4] The constituency lies within the London Borough of Lewisham, in which the Labour Party won every single seat at the local elections in 2018. The seat features an active branch of Momentum, a left-wing pressure group dedicated to supporting the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn.
Lewisham voted "Remain" in the 2016 referendum on EU membership. As Lewisham East is only part of the borough, the precise constituency result is unknown. However, through demographic modelling, the "Remain" vote in Lewisham East has been estimated at 66% by Number Cruncher Politics and 65% by Chris Hanretty at Royal Holloway.[5]
Candidates
The Labour Party's candidate selection process is likely to be fiercely contested between Momentum activists, trade unionists and Labour centrists.[1] The selection shortlist will be drawn up by Labour's national executive committee, the first by-election since Jennie Formby took over as general secretary,[6] leading to speculation that the 'hotly contested candidature' will result in centrist candidates being excluded from the process.[7][1] Potential left-wing candidates include Sakina Sheikh, GMB organiser Nadine Houghton, and NEC member Claudia Webbe. Sakina Sheikh formally announced her candidacy an hour after Heidi Alexander confirmed her resignation.[1][8] Other potential candidates include Joe Dromey (son of sitting Labour MPs Harriet Harman and Jack Dromey), and Kevin Bonavia.[9] UK Black Pride founder Phyll Opoku-Gyimah was also considered to be a potential candidate, especially in the event of Labour drawing up an all-woman, all-BAME selection shortlist.[10]
In an immediate statement released following Heidi Alexander's resignation, the active Lewisham Momentum group expressed their support for a socialist candidate to be selected for Labour who would be "eager to campaign for...a left-wing government with Jeremy Corbyn as Prime Minister".[11]
2017 result
Outgoing MP Heidi Alexander was re-elected to a third term of office in 2017, with an increased majority of 21,123 (44.8%) over the Conservative candidate.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Heidi Alexander | 32,072 | 67.9 | +12.3 | |
| Conservative | Peter Fortune | 10,859 | 23.0 | +0.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Emily Frith | 2,086 | 4.4 | −1.3 | |
| Green | Störm Poorun | 803 | 1.7 | −4.0 | |
| UKIP | Keith Forster | 798 | 1.6 | −7.4 | |
| Independent | Willow Winston | 355 | 0.7 | N/A | |
| CPA | Maureen Martin | 228 | 0.4 | −0.2 | |
| Majority | 21,123 | 44.8 | +11.4 | ||
| Turnout | 47,201 | 69.3 | +5.2 | ||
| Registered electors | 68,124 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | +5.8 | |||
References
- ^ a b c d "Heidi Alexander quits as Labour MP to be London deputy mayor". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Heidi Alexander". House of Commons. UK Parliament. 8 May 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- ^ "Labour MP Heidi Alexander resigns to become London deputy mayor". The Independent. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Heidi Alexander triggers Lewisham East by-election by stepping down". ITV News. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Two reasons to focus on London". Number Cruncher Politics. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ Elgot, Jessica. "Heidi Alexander quits as Labour MP to be London deputy mayor". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- ^ Buchan, Lizzy. "Labour MP Heidi Alexander resigns to become London deputy mayor". The Independent. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
- ^ Sheikh, Sakina. "I am putting myself forward to be the next Labour Candidate in Lewisham East. Lewisham has been home my whole life, and I would be proud to represent the vibrant and diverse communities here. My statement is below:". Twitter. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "BALLOTING AGAIN When is the Lewisham East by-election, who are the candidates going to be and what is Labour's majority in the seat?". The Sun. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|dead-url=(help) - ^ "Founder Of UK Black Pride Tipped For Lewisham East As Labour Prepares All-Woman, BAME Shortlist". Huffington Post. Retrieved 9 May 2018.
- ^ Downs, Anita. Facebook - Lewisham for Corbyn. Facebook - Lewisham for Corbyn https://www.facebook.com/LewishamMomentum/posts/881033178749670. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Lewisham East parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
- ^ http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7979/CBP-7979.pdf