Leah Fraser is PPC for Wallasey on Merseyside, having successfully reduced the sitting Labour MP's majority at the 2005 general election. She is also a councillor in the constituency and writes a regular blog. She explains here how she is "love-bombing" Liberal Democrats.
“What are you bothering with them for?” That was the most common response from among my constituency colleagues when we started to woo the Liberal Democrat supporters in Wallasey.
You can see why. With 13% of the vote in 2005 and not a single Liberal Democrat councillor in the constituency since 1975, the Party of Clegg, Campbell and Kennedy has not been seen as a threat in Wallasey for a generation or more.
I see them as an opportunity. The Liberal Democrat performance in Wallasey is lamentable. Fourth place in some wards and no better than third place in the others. There is no Lib Dem activity to speak of and the ongoing saga of the non-selection of a Lib Dem Parliamentary candidate is adding to their woes.
Two years ago, we decided to "lovebomb" the remaining Liberal Democrat voters. Through thrice-weekly doorstep surveys, we had identified around 500 Liberal Democrat voters.
This is substantially below the 4,770 votes they received in the 2005 General Election and, from this, we conclude that the Lib Dem supporters are either:
- Too embarrassed to admit who they support; or
- Are taking part in some kind of mass deception of our canvassers.
The former is possible, the latter is unlikely. So, from that point on, in every piece of direct mail to Conservatives and Probables and in most newsletters, we include a ‘Lib Dem squeeze’ message. Nothing too heavy, just the usual ‘can’t win here’ kind of message. The Lib Dems can hardly complain.
In addition, we have sent specific mailers to the 500 Lib Dems (including their members, nomination paper signatories and candidates).
This has included more overt messaging including a very successful survey ‘Focus on the Liberal Democrats’, asking how they rated their recent leaders and which issues (of ours) they agreed with.
This has culminated in a dedicated website for Liberal Democrats in the constituency - www.liberaldemocratsforleah.org - along the lines of the early ‘Lib Dems for Cameron’ site. Our local site will be promoted to the 500 or so Liberal Democrats through more direct mail and email updates.
The number of local Lib Dems who have switched has also helped us to demonstrate that ‘people like you vote Conservative’.
Wallasey is not the kind of constituency in which all we have to worry about is getting out the vote. We need to ensure that Conservatives vote but we also need to attract the support of non-traditional Conservative supporters.
With 4,770 Liberal Democrat votes ‘wasted’, we are working to secure a tactical vote in order to gain the seat. Lovebombing is the way forward!
