'In the West Midlands constituency RESPECT polled 34,704 votes (2.4%). But across Birmingham the vote averaged 7.4%. In ten Birmingham inner-city wards RESPECT polled between 18% - 39% of the vote. The average in these ten wards was 24%. RESPECT came first in both Bordsley Green and Sparkhill wards. In Sparkbrook ward and in Nechells ward RESPECT came second. In both Aston and Washwood Heath it came third. - Respect web site.
These are the results of a few short weeks of intensive campaigning, from a starting point of zero. The vote was mainly concentrated in former Labour heartlands, the inner gal! picked up in outer ring mainly white working class areas.
The campaign was assisted by the support of the People's Justice Party, who stood seven candidates for the City Council but called for their supporters to vote RESPECT in the Euro elections. In the end, the PJP lost their only 2 seats on the Council despite polling very well.
Their defeat was partly caused by Labour ballot rigging, via the postal ballots - one Labour Party member was caught by the police sitting in his car with a large number of signed ballot forms, filling them in himself! The leader of the Council, Albert Bore, declared that this was not illeAt one of the counts, a box of 200 postal ballots, all for Labour, was brought in at the last minute to deny a PJP victory.
The areas in which Respect did well in were also heavily targeted by the LibDems and UKIP, so to come top of the poll in two areas was a huge achievement. In neighbouring Sandwell, despite an almost these areas. absence of campaigning, over two thousand votes were obtained.
At a post election rally, on June 17 over 150 people heard an upbeat message about the campaign and a a high note. welcome clear call to take the development of RESPECT further. George Galloway talked about the prospect of standing a candidate in a likely Hodge Hill by-election if the Labour MP Terry Davis leaves the sinking across the city. ship and departs for a job in Europe....go on Terry, make my day!"
Hodge Hill includes one of the wards where RESPECT did well. Salma Yaqoob declared that we could not accept that the outer ring white areas were the constituencies of the right and far right. We had to get out and start campaigning in
All present, a multi - racial mixture, with a number of younger people in attendance, were encouraged to join ed in January. RESPECT and the meeting ended on
The next task is to consolidate new members, recruit more, and set up democratic campaigning structures. An all-Birmingham structure will be necessary to coordinate local efforts
Mark Serwotka who spoke strongly for Respect at its fringe meeting at PCS conference needs to play a more central role in the organisation. The FBU which has just broken from Labour at its conference needs to be won to Respect. Other organisations of the left like the CPB and the Socialist Party need to come into Respect. It is still insufficiently politically diverse. Red of the year: This no to be working, espect is planning a second conference towards
conference which will adopt a constitution and an organisational structure. We need a wider discussion on policy issues beyond the founding statement adoptAbove all Respect needs to be developed into an active and campaigning organisation which does not just exist during elections but is there all the time.
We did well in getting the name recognition we did, given a media blackout for the first two thinds of the cam paign. But our potential will only be realised when we are widely known amongst the population and seen to be a permanent feature in the political landscape
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soclalst resistance Summer 2004 5