Local elections
A record number of Green Party candidates have contested the local and general elections in the West Midlands in recent years, winning several Council seats. We now have Councillors in every County of our Region bar Shropshire, with 12 Councillors on 7 Councils. We're now looking towards elections in 2013, and supporting Local Parties to mount the best campaigns they can.
If you want to get involved in campaigning to win elections, get in touch by emailing westmidlands@greenparty.org.uk or look up your local party here.
Past election success
In 2012, the Green party successfully defended all its seats in the region, and made several new gains:
- Chris Williams was elected in Chelmsley Wood with 63% of the vote. Howard Allen and Mike Sheridan were both successfully re-elected, taking the Solihull group upto 5 Councillors
- Will Duckworth became Dudley's first ever Green Councillor
- In Worcester, Neil Laurenson became Worcester's first elected Green on 50% of the vote
- Nuneaton elected Keith Konkador as Warwickshire's first Green councillor.
In 2011, the Green Party gained a number of seats in the region:
- Two new Councillors, Alison Walters and Karl Macnaughton, won in Smith's Wood and Chelmsley Wood in Solihull, with 46% and 51% of the vote respectively. Cllr Howard Allen, a former Liberal Democrat Councillor, switched allegiances in Shirley West to increase our Councillor base to four seats in Solihull.
- Tom Harris won our first ever seat on Stafford Borough Council
- Felicity Norman was elected to the Leominster North seat of Herefordshire Council. The Green Party won 3 seats on Leominster Town Council on the same day.
- Luna Deller was newly elected in West Malvern, joining John Raine, who held his seat at the same time. Julian Roskams has since gained a seat on Malvern Town Council.
- In Dudley, Worcester, Leamington Spa and Malvern Hills, the Green Party had very strong second places with good chances of winning more seats at the next opportunity.
In 2008, the Green Party celebrated a huge win in Solihull, where Mike Sheridan was catapulted on to the Council, beating the Council's Labour Leader. Mike came fourth with 9% in 2007 and first with 45% in 2008. Cllr Sheridan is now adding a much needed progressive voice to the Borough. In Herefordshire, Jacqui Tonge has since taken a seat on Lower Bullingham Parish Council.
In 2007, the Greens celebrated a gain in Herefordshire where Gerald Dawe won in Hollington ward, near Hereford, in a four-way nail-bighting contest. Gerald's principal campaign was against the proposed Rotherwas access road, which passes over an ancient archaeological site much loved by local people. Greens also held seats on Malvern Hills and South Shropshire District Councils. At the same election, the Green Party saw the election of Parish and Town Councillors in Leominster and Cradley in Herefordshire, Bishop's Castle and Longden in Shopshire, North Staffordshire, Evesham, Pershore, Malvern Wells, the Lickey Hills and Suckley in Worcestershire.
