Left-wing victories at the local elections: The spark that will light the fire!

Whilst literally every major political party has been busy briefing the media about how this year's local elections have been a massive victory for THEIR party specifically, including even the Tories – its truly magical what one can achieve with a nice bit of spin – the one story you won’t be hearing about in the Guardian or on BBC News is the astonishing victories various left-wing candidates have had over both the Conservatives and Labour.

The loudest applause must be saved for the Liverpool Community Independents who not only elected 3 councillors to Liverpool City Council but elected them with significant and dominating majorities over the incumbent Labour Party.

What makes these victories so much sweeter is that they were achieved at the end of a long and stressful campaign which saw a desperate Labour Party sling whole silos of shit at the socialist candidates. Including a deceptive “newsletter” accusing one LCI candidate of being an anti-monarchist traitor and several instances of Labour campaigners shouting abuse at LCI candidates in public... no wonder the electorate of Garston and Orrell Park Wards rejected Labour and their hatred so firmly.

Nothing says more about the modern Labour Party than its focus on abusing ex-members whilst welcoming Tories into the party with open arms.

But the success of socialists isn’t just limited to the North West. Down in Portsmouth, Cal Corkery – a Working Class, ex-Labour Cllr who was suspended for the grand old crime of... liking a Facebook page – was re-elected as an independent in the heart of Labour Territory in the city.

Similarly in Maidenhead, Alison Carpenter has joined a local independent grouping and received significant electoral support in a ward that saw Labour come 2nd to last.

But its not only independent-avenues through which leftists have found electoral success this May. Several Comrades who are members of the Green Party have seen staggering success. Despite the Green’s rejection of an anti-capitalist political analysis and their failure to tackle and eradicate transphobia from their ranks, they are at the very least a vessel through which socialists can find success. As proved by ex-Labour Councillor Jo Bird in the Wirral and Heather Skibsted in Peterborough. Both achieved significant majorities with Bird even beating the massive majority she got in 2021 as a Labour candidate.

The clear message a socialist looking to build electoral success in their own community can take from this, is that long-term dedication to the area you represent will reap greater rewards than any party logo at the ballot box. This fact will no doubt boost the morale of local socialists and environmentalists supporting the re-election of ex-Labour Councillor Tony Randerson in the Eastfield by-election. With such a dedicated local representative, it seems near certain that the fortunes of those comrades in Liverpool, Portsmouth and elsewhere will be equally felt here along the Yorkshire Coast.

Similarly, it is to be hoped that this success might persuade those in Islington North to commit to the idea of Jeremy Corbyn running as an independent at the next election.

It is clear from May’s results that despite the last 3 years of the decline of the Labour Party and the attempted destruction of the left, that we socialists have at least one card left to play. That of the community-based, grassroots campaign from which greater and more national success can be built. The grassroots were the heart of Labour’s success under Corbyn, they will the heart of our success in the following epoch.

It isn’t, alas, all roses and sunshine. Whilst the success of comrades with long histories of community service in elections is to be praised, the question does arise: how do we build support where no existing left-wing representatives exist? The electoral success of long-time community representatives outside of Labour is a fantastic foundation, but how do we take those next steps? How do we build new talent? How do we create support in new areas of the country?

Another problem which will have burdened comrades throughout this year’s campaigns and will continue to burden us for years to come is that of assets, funding and media coverage. Small, disparate parties and especially independents all lack the massive campaign funds, electorate data and organised activist bases of the major political parties. Whilst this makes the victories of leftists all the more impressive, it does present a serious practical concern for the future of the left outside of the Labour Party.

One group that seeks to offer a solution to at least one part of this conundrum is the TUSC. The Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition is looking to reignite its electoral efforts at the next general election. On the issue of media coverage, they have highlighted the point that only parties which stand a large enough number of candidates at the general election will be legally required to receive media coverage and be allowed to produce a party-political broadcast for TV. Both crucial factors in being able to spread the message of a more equal world. A similar point could be made that only by coming together and standing on a united platform will we ever have the necessary funds and assets to run an even half-successful campaign.

But then again, that’s easier said than done. It seems to continue to be the case that the wider British left is still in a level of political inactivity where it requires the leadership of some ex-Labour MP to actually get-up and go and organise itself into a united political entity. We can only hope that from these inspiring victories at the local level, we might begin to see the first signs of a revitalised left starting to come together.