The Final Results – Grays Riverside Local Election Running Commentary part 5

So, we come to the last episode of my running commentary on the current local election and it has been a much better fight for the position of Grays Riverside councillor than last year.  Below is the final scores for each candidate based on the rating scale I created.

The Candidates and Where They Stand

Below is a table of the scores each candidate received.  I have not, however, identified the names of the candidates but simply used their party affiliation as there really is no reason to pour scorn on the candidates until they are elected.

Party à	Conservative	Labour	BNP	UKIP	Lib Dem
Ratings â	(3 leaflets left)	(1 leaflet left)	(2 leaflets left)	(3 leaflets left)	N/A
Eagerness	4	3	5	2	0
Engagement	1	1	1	1	N/A
Local focussed?	3/2/(2) [2.5]	2	0/0	2/0/0 [0.7]	N/A
Information	2/1/(3) [1.5]	1	0/0	1/0/0 [0.3]	N/A
Blame Game	0/0/(0)	0	3/0 [1.5]	0/0/0	N/A
Passion	2/1/(2) [1.5]	2	0/0	1/1/1 [1]	N/A
Willingness To Work Together	0/0/(1) [0]	0	0/0	0/0/0	N/A
Presentation	3/2/(3) [2.5]	3	0/0	2/0/0 [0.7]	N/A
Fear mongering	0/0/(1) [0]	1	0/0	1/0/0 [0.3]	N/A
Exactly how will you ensure your pledges will be enacted?	0/0/(1) [0]	0	0/0	1/0/0 [0.3]	N/A
Bonus Points	(7)	2	-	-	N/A
Total Score	13	15	7.5	6.3	0

Please note: Examples using the format above for the numbers in brackets are listed below so you can see why the score was assigned.

·         (2) – the score for a leaflet that is about the party and not the candidate and was, therefore, removed from the candidate’s score.

·         [2.5] – the score in square brackets is based on the average score if more than one leaflet was left.

As you can see it was a very close race for top spot between the Labour and Conservative candidates and the Liberal Democrat candidate came a very poor last with a complete no-show.  Of course, my rating scale is based on my subjective judgement on the evidence to hand and I feel that I have actually been over-generous in some of the allocation of my scores.  Yes, there was much more of a contest this year but the candidates still did not really sell themselves as well as they should have and, in this respect, the contest was as lacklustre as last year’s performance.  In fact, it could be said that last year’s contest was better, in that, the one candidate who did make an appearance actually did sell herself very well; it was only my feeling that I could not vote at all without some knowledge of her competitors that prevented me from voting for her, something I deeply regret.

I will, however, be voting this year as I have had the chance to weigh up the candidates and I will be voting for the Labour candidate, not because I am a Labour supporter but because his leaflet was the most persuasive in showing him to be the best person for the job.

Postscript

Just in case last year’s candidate is reading this, I would like to say this – I did not vote for you last year for the reasons I have already given but, should you stand again, you have my vote with no need to ask for it.  When my good name was smeared by a fellow blogger, you pledged to support me if I wished to make an issue of it even though I told you on the telephone that I had not voted for you.  That is an act of a true representative and should be recognised as such. So, Ms Morris-Cook, when you run again you can be assured of one enthusiastic vote because I know you have my interests to heart, from your recent actions and our conversation on my doorstep last year.

Until next time...