Each week a different PPC provides us with an insight
into life as a candidate and gives us a flavour of their own campaign
and interests. If you are a candidate and are keen to be featured,
please email Jonathan Isaby.
This week’s diary is written by Melanie Hampton, who was selected in November 2008 for Mitcham and Morden. Angela Rumbold gained the seat for the Conservatives at a 1982 by-election and held it until the 1997 general election when she was defeated by Labour's Siobhan McDonagh, who Melanie will be challenging at the general election. She needs a 16% swing to gain the seat. Melanie is a wife and mother who also runs her own Insurance Broking business. She describes herself as "fun, feisty and formidable and more than up for the challenge of this seat".
Monday 16th November
Being a female politician is an advantage because women tend to be good listeners and that is exactly what I have spent the last year doing, knocking on thousands of doors and listening. Today we took the fight against the expansion of a recycling plant to stage two. The community don’t want this and I agree with them. Months of hard work tramping the damp and windy streets, but 535 concerned residents signed the petition and a number came with me to hand this in to Councillor Diane Neil Mills. Diane is smart and effective. She pulled off a new train station in 22 months, she gets the job done and yes, she listens too. The “other man” in my life was also there - Richard Hilton, my hard working chairman, canvass companion and now friend.
This is politics at its very best identifying those local issues, championing the cause and believing that People Power does work. It will be some fight to prevent this project but Melanie is in terrier mode and is not going to let go or give up!
Tuesday 17th November
Dog tired today. Let no one pretend that fighting a challenging seat is easy, it is hard, hard work. I am always chasing the money to fund the next round of literature, fitting in the admin and nurturing a growing number of activists, squeezing in as many events as possible and the endless round of canvassing. Another advantage of being a female candidate… multi-tasking is in our DNA.
Tonight we had out Executive and I remember why I love M & M. All I promise them is months and months of hard graft but we all sense that this is our time and that we will gain council seats and that the parliamentary seat is within our grasp. A long but lively meeting covering a lot of ground and with some really good ideas coming out of the group. Can’t resist it… women are very good team players.
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