Last week’s by-election results show a massive swing against the Conservatives, with voters proving that they are capable of figuring out which party has the best chance to beat the incumbent.

In the Somerset constituency of Somerton and Frome, the Conservative vote dropped by 29% and the Lib Dem vote increased by 29%. Last year, the Liberal Democrats achieved an even bigger swing to win the Devon seat of Tiverton and Honiton from third place! Interestingly the vote share in Tiverton and Honiton at the 2019 General Election almost exactly matched the result in South East Cornwall. If this swing were to be replicated here at the next General Election, I would comfortably beat the Conservative to become the first Liberal Democrat MP for South East Cornwall since 2010.

So why do by-election results often deliver bigger swings than those seen in General elections? First, they don’t change who will be the Prime Minister; in turn, this allows people to cast their votes based on local issues and the quality of the local candidates. And finally, in a by-election, volunteers from across the country can travel to help out in one constituency.

Interestingly, the next general election has the potential to deliver a by-election type result in South East Cornwall. After thirteen years of misrule, it is clear that the Conservatives will lose their Commons majority and Rishi Sunak will be thrown out of Downing Street. Labour will become the biggest party in Parliament. Whatever the result in South East Cornwall, Keir Starmer will be the next Prime Minister (though in his quest for power, he is sounding more and more like a Conservative anyway).

So, with the race for the top job already sewn up, voters in South East Cornwall will have the luxury of being able to use their vote to choose who they want as their local representative. For far too long, our corner of Cornwall has been overlooked by London and Truro alike. Investment in economic development has been focused on the “A30 corridor”, whilst South East Cornwall has missed out. Thirteen years of promised safety upgrades to the deadly A38 have come to nothing, and the Tamar Tolls continue to rise, with Conservative and Labour MPs on both sides of the Tamar supporting the Government line that the ever-increasing costs must be borne by hard-pressed local drivers. As your MP, I would fight without fear or favour to get a fair deal for South East Cornwall.

So, the pitch is set for a by-election-style result. If we can pull together a big enough team, victory is possible! If you can help take this message to the voters, either by delivering leaflets, knocking on doors, or simply displaying a poster at election time, please contact www.seclibdems.uk/volunteer