Preston Respect has launched its fourth election campaign, with the aim of winning at least one seat to Preston City Council. Respect has had strong electoral support in previous elections in central urban Preston, winning up to 27% of the vote across a wide area.
The most important battle this May will be in the Town Centre ward, where leading Respect member Michael Lavalette will be defending the council seat he won sensationally four years ago as "Socialist Alliance Against the War".
He won that election on the back of muslim hostility to a pro-war muslim Labour councillor, at the height of the opposition to the Iraq war.
Since then Lavalette has played a leading role in the Council and has broadened the appeal of Respect through campaigns around twinning with Palestine, global debt and poverty, local environmental and traffic issues, opposition to
council cuts and, most recently, defence of the NHS. The war in Iraq remains a central and still popular theme. Respect came within seven votes of winning the seat in 2006 with a then largely unknown candidate against the sitting councillor for the last 20 years and a former MP. While it will be a tight contest, Respect are throwing all their resources at the Lavalette has played a leading role in the Council and has broadened the appeal of Respect through campaigns around twinning with Palestine, global debt and poverty, local environmental and traffic issues, opposition to council cuts and, most recently, defence of the NHS.
campaign and are hopeful of a significant victory and the winning of Respect's first election in its own name outside London and Birmingham. Supporters have come from across the region to help with leafleting and canvassing. The campaign has also received a boost with the endorsement of former Preston council leader, Valerie Wise, who lives in Town Centre ward. Wise publicly resigned from the Labour Party a few months ago, after a lifetime of support including as a former GLC councillor in London and the founding chair of its Women's Committee, as a former Preston councillor, and working as assistant to her late mother, Audrey Wise, MP in Preston and Coventry.
She currently leads a very prominent local campaign on against domestic violence. Wise is currently considering standing as a candidate in Preston for the next general
In the previous elections for the City Council in 2004 and 2006, Respect contested the same five wards in central urban Preston and has concentrated on building its support in this area. Respect also contested a wide part of the City in the County and General election in 2005.
But Preston has a system of two and three member wards, which means that every year some wards do not hold
Unfortunately two of the five wards where Respect has consistently campaigned and had some of its strongest results are not up for election this year.
As well as the Town Centre ward, Respect will be contesting the two other seats fought before that are up for election - Riversway and St Matthews.
Respect managed a strong challenge in Riversway from former Labour Councillor Elaine Abbot who joined Respect. Respect will also be contesting the University ward for the first time - this is a very small ward and, unusually for central Preston, has a largely white population with significant proportions of white council housing mixed with student residences.
Respect has been campaigning in the ward over issues of speculative development and has received some support from residents.
So altogether Respect will be contesting four seats in the city and is hopeful of outright victory in one, and aiming for at least a strong second place in the others.
Independent former Labour councillor Terry Cartwright will also be defending his Deepdale ward seat. Cartwright is a former supporter of the Socialist Alliance who gained 5% in the parliamentary byelection in 2000.
Further information about the campaign: prestonrespect.org
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