Local Action, Global Change: Vote Leo #2

In November 2019, the Isle of Man Green Party, started its campaign for the local election gearing up for April 2020. The party has held meetings in Douglas, Ramsey, Peel and Port Erin so far, with more dates for your diary from January 2020. If you would like to keep up to date with these dates, please check the Green Calendar, or our social media pages:

In the “Local Action, Global Change” campaign second article (you can read the first article here), Isle of Man Green Party Election Strategist, Leo Cussons, talks about campaigning and what to expect on election day.

On the Campaign Trail

As I started to campaign a number of things became apparent, it was not going to be possible in the by-election to get around all the residents. If you can, then, without doubt, your chances of succeeding are greatly increased. People expect to meet the candidate before they will vote for them, especially if they do not live in the area. I managed with the help of Green Party supporters to deliver 400 copies of my manifestos to homes in Malew and I personally spoke to about 140 people. There is no doubt this is where our elections are lost and won. From a Party perspective the opportunity for discussion on green issues is never wasted. The Party carries on forward and the conversations that I have had do not end with me, but are part of something much larger.

There are techniques that one learns in canvassing door to door, and you’re not on your own if you want or need support from the rest of Party. Ultimately the end goal is to be able to say at the end Vote Green, Vote Leo ( or candidate name). Not in some easy fashion but in a way that you have taken the resident and allayed his or her concerns and established a relationship of trust. Several people helped me on my campaign, and nothing is as effective as someone else saying “Vote Leo, he is an honest, trustworthy and principled candidate”.

The Party arranged a meeting at Ballasalla church hall about a week before election day. Where Andrew Jessop the elected chair at Braddan Commissioners came along to speak as well as myself and Andrew Langan-Newton party Leader. We had a number of people in attendance and interesting debate and some good questions were posited. Upon reflection, I think it may have been better to have called a requisition meeting as this would require all the candidates to attend and undoubtedly would have created a bigger debate.

The last issue to consider here is plum voting, where a resident votes for only one candidate. Where there are several candidates standing the aim is to ensure that you get maximum support. A plum vote secures this because if the resident votes for another candidate or more than can weaken your chances of getting elected.

Election Day

The candidate that scored the most votes lived only 20 meters from the polling booth and was able to be on hand all day. He greeted each resident that came to vote and to his credit informed them that one of the 6 candidates was no longer standing. There is no doubt the effectiveness of such an action, but you need to be prepared as it is a long day. In my experience, the bulk of the work is done before polling day, but the day itself is important also. By-elections are a special sort of election because there is the space for more interest from the public. After the polling station closes candidates and appointed agents are allowed to witness the counting of votes. I scored 131 votes and came forth, just missing out on being elected. However, 131 people made the time and effort to come down and vote for what we had to offer. That is something to build upon in future elections and something I am very grateful for.

The turnout was 5% higher than usual for such an election. As a party, it has enabled us to build strong platforms for candidates to be able to seek election. It is without doubt one of the most worthwhile activities I have participated in 2019. As another of the Commissioners has resigned from Ballasalla recently it is possible that the Government could appoint me if they fell below quorate rather than have another by-election… so it may not be all over just yet!