Yeovil Lib Dems announce candidate for next general election
The fight to become the next MP to represent Yeovil is heating up after the Liberal Democrats announced their candidate.
The Yeovil[1] constituency has been held by Conservative[2] MP Marcus Fysh since 2015, who defeated the incumbent David Laws with a 16 per cent swing. Mr Fysh is currently fighting to remain his party’s candidate for the next general election[3], going to party members for a ballot after the executive of the Yeovil constituency branch did not vote to re-adopt him.
The Lib Dems[4] – who held the seat continuously between 1983 and 2015 – have now announced Adam Dance as their candidate who will be fighting to unseat Mr Fysh at the next election, which must take place in January 2025 at the latest. The Labour Party[5] and the Green Party[6] have both already announced their prospective parliamentary candidates, making it currently a four-horse race.
Mr Dance currently serves on Somerset Council[8], representing the South Petherton and Islemoor division (comprising numerous villages either side of the A303[9]) and serving as portfolio holder for public health and equalities[10]. Prior to winning his seat in May 2022 (where he received the highest number of votes of any individual candidate[11]), Mr Dance represented the same division on Somerset County Council[12] for five years and spoke up for South Petherton on South Somerset District Council[13] from 2015.
Councillor Mike Hewitson, chairman of the Yeovil Liberal Democrats – and representative of the neighbouring Coker division[14] – said that Mr Dance would fight hard to protect the constituency’s public services and the environment. He said: “We are thrilled to have selected Adam as our candidate for the next general election.
“Adam is a passionate local community champion who makes things happen. He brings real world experience, common sense and hard work to his campaigning. Adam has a long track record of winning elections for us in Somerset and our team looks forward to campaigning alongside him to win the Yeovil constituency at the next general election[15].”
Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh (Image: Len Copland)
Mr Dance – who also runs his own gardening and landscaping business[16] – added: “I have lived in our area my whole life and I couldn’t be more committed to standing up for our part of Somerset[17] in Westminster. Yeovil needs an MP who gets things done, is accessible to local people and genuinely cares about the people of Somerset.
“For too long the Conservatives have taken our area, our public services and our country for granted. It’s time for change and last year’s election results show that it is only the Lib Dems who can beat the Conservatives next time around.
“I know that with my commitment, experience and energy, I am ready to serve the residents and businesses of Yeovil, our towns and villages to ensure we have an MP who truly cares about our community.” Mr Dance will be the second former South Somerset councillor who has stood for the party at recent general elections – following on from Jo Roundell-Greene in 2017[18] (who is currently a Somerset Council councillor).
(Image: Yeovil Labour Party)
While the Lib Dems currently control Somerset’s new unitary authority, they have struggled to make in-roads in the two general elections held since the Brexit[19] referendum of 2016. In 2019, Mr Fysh won 58.4 per cent of the vote against Mick Clark’s 31.1 per cent, giving Mr Fysh a majority of 16,181[20].
The Labour Party has selected Martin Jevon to be its Yeovil candidate, who currently works as service director for a national health charity, having previously worked for the county council. Mr Jevon, who grew up in Taunton[21], was originally due to stand for the party in 2015, but had to withdraw following back surgery.
The Green Party’s candidate for the constituency will be Serena Wootton, who currently sits on Chard[22] Town Council having grown up in Gloucestershire. Ms Wootton spent 20 years as a teacher, rising to the position of assistant head teacher at a special needs school before leaving in 2017 to focus on a new environmental-themed career.
(Image: South Somerset Green Party)
She said: “In addition to my interest in the natural environment, I am passionate about social justice. In particular, I advocate for children and young people that find it difficult to access their local community, enabling them to play a meaningful role within their community.
“This combination of social and environmental issues drew me to The Green Party, and I am delighted to be the new prospective parliamentary candidate for Yeovil.” The new constituency boundaries for Yeovil, as recommended by the Boundary Commission for England (BCE)[23], are expected to be formally adopted this summer – boundaries which would see the villages north of Yeovil (including Ilchester and Podimore) moved into the new Glastonbury[24] and Somerton[25] constituency.
The next general election must take place on or before January 28, 2025, with parliament having to be dissolved on or before December 17, 2024.
References
- ^ Yeovil (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Conservative (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ currently fighting to remain his party’s candidate for the next general election (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Lib Dems (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ The Labour Party (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ the Green Party (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ DWP on major Universal Credit shake-up with thousands to lose out on £390 top-up (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Somerset Council (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ A303 (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ serving as portfolio holder for public health and equalities (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ where he received the highest number of votes of any individual candidate (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Somerset County Council (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ South Somerset District Council (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ representative of the neighbouring Coker division (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ general election (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ who also runs his own gardening and landscaping business (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Somerset (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ following on from Jo Roundell-Greene in 2017 (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Brexit (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ giving Mr Fysh a majority of 16,181 (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Taunton (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Chard (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ The new constituency boundaries for Yeovil, as recommended by the Boundary Commission for England (BCE) (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Glastonbury (www.somersetlive.co.uk)
- ^ Somerton (www.somersetlive.co.uk)