By Jay Singh
The Left candidate in this case was myself lol.
(Jay stood as a Socialist and Trade Union Candidate in St Paul’s ward.)
I had the help of a small but key group of several mostly young people who helped me with canvassing though admittedly due to time and scheduling constraints I ultimately did still end up doing 90% of the door knocking. I also got help both in terms of donations and graphic design from YP people.
I have personally canvassed before but this was the first campaign I had to conduct in the safest Labour seat in Sandwell. Against a party machine that had significantly more resources and manpower as well having been campaigning since 2025, whilst I only started properly in March 2026.
I received 214 votes and 6.7% of the vote, which was more than the Tory candidates and only just behind Reform. I think that I’ll try again next year with more lead time to campaign.
The left of labour vote including both myself and the greens underperformed in Sandwell relative to expectations. I attribute this to tactical voting. The Labour Party sent out addressed mail, saying it was Labour vs Reform, even in wards like mine where Reform had no chance.
To get 214 votes was really impressive given the various factors.
(Previously published in Connections Newsletter issue no. 3)
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