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Reform’s election stampede may be the catalyst for the cancellation of the 2026 Southend elections
- James Miller
- May 2
- 5 min read
With Reform’s rampage at the various elections it just shows how important it was that democracy was upheld. We were told Labour and Tories would be annihilated and though that is not strictly true, the change in vote share has been severe.
Reform’s popularity has gained a credibility that any Conservatives clutching on to the strategy of ‘vote Reform, get Labour’ is finished. The light at the end of the tunnel for them is that Labour is equally finished. The question is just how the right wing finish them.
Were I in Farage’s position I would never join with the Tories. The Lib Dem’s suffered the consequences of that as did Farage himself after the Brexit vote. Assuming that being the case Labour still have a very real chance of winning any upcoming elections where they are the strongest left wing party.
The cancellation (or postponement as some prefer to call it) of the Essex local elections due to the undemocratic implementation of devolution and ‘local government reorganisation’ would have seen Reform transform the make-up of the councils.
Those who orchestrated the cancellation will be quietly (or loudly) patting themselves on the back knowing they have shielded both Labour and Conservatives from possible wipe outs.
At the expense of democracy they live to fight on for now. They will hope that something happens to Reform by 2026. Anything that will destroy them will do. Whoever has been tasked with this responsibility will have to get their thinking caps on as time is starting to run out.
With Reform conquering the UK, if Confelicity successfully campaign to stop the cancellation of the 2026 elections in Southend and they go ahead, we will not likely benefit - but so be it. The campaign was only ever about our right to vote, pure and simple.
Lee Clark, our superhero candidate who puts Kursaal residents at the very heart of what he does, may well claim a unique victory in his ward. He works tirelessly on a voluntary basis on top of his immense charity work.
Traditionally Kursaal is a Labour ward, but those rules will be forgotten. At a guess it will be between Lee and whichever Reform candidate is put up. The incumbent, Cllr Dent, who also happens to be Cabinet Member for Culture, Tourism and Business, has gone full Emperor in Gladiator by giving the mob (us) what we want by desperately suggesting he will bring back the Air Show. You never know - it could work!
We have other candidates who should do well, such as Diane Sossou in Thorpe Ward. With Cllr Terry holding on to his one vote victory last time round everything is to play for. Many times a strong campaign is enough and could prove to be the case here.
I will also be looking to increase my share of the vote in Leigh, while I also stand as the Mayor of Essex.
Where Confelicity will be 4 years in by then and our reputation as a locally focussed independent party established, we might reasonably have expected to be many voters’ party of choice and picked up some seats. Alas, this may now be less likely. However, given that Confelicity is made up of Southend residents who have day jobs and busy lives, not being elected is not the end of the world. Whatever happens we will continue to provide a local voice and address local concerns too big for the national parties to pay due attention.
For those whose livelihoods are dependent on election success that is another matter.
If the 2026 elections go ahead with Reform involved, I can see it being the dirtiest election in years. But that’s the point - the dirtiest tactic available and the one guarenteed to succeed is to cancel the 2026 elections.
For those tasked with defying Reform they will have no other choice. Reform in Southend are lead by the highly experienced former Tory Leader, Cllr Tony Cox, and I am sure they will easily find enough candidates to stand in all 17 wards.
I predict an announcement will be made, for reasons difficult for us commoners to interpret, that the elections will be called off.
Time and money are the primary arguments already, but I think it will need to be a little stronger as the strength of feeling for Reform has grown and their angst for any future cancellations will not be so easily accepted.
Labour will need to wait around 3 months to give it enough room for the decision to look unconnected. And the same will be true around the rest of the country where it is possible to do so. It is the only way both Labour and Tories can remain in their seats.
It is a naive belief that our politicians will put democracy above their survival, which is why more than ever it is vital Southend residents sign this e-petition: https://democracy.southend.gov.uk/mgEPetitionDisplay.aspx?ID=99 (petition closes on May 8th).
We now need a guarantee from the Labour Leader of Southend City Council, Daniel Cowan, that he 100% backs the elections. No more hiding behind the excuse it is a central government decision - it is his party that are in government and these kind conversations are very possible.
Conclusion
My view is there is no amount of money in the world that can justify stamping all over our rights to vote who we want to represent us.
Cancelling elections, and therefore shutting down democracy, should only come through the most extreme circumstances, not some flimsy reason of time, money and bad planning. Labour should have thought about that before they dictated to us that these devolutionary changes would happen.
Our right to vote is the epicentre of our individual power. It doesn’t really feel like that when we’re in the voting booth casting our one vote amongst millions, but deny us this and our power evaporates.
Despite democracy being flawed, manipulated and abused and that it produces some horrendous results (depending on your perspective) that rarely pleases anyone let alone everyone, I still believe in it. The requirement to hold elections means the eyes of our leaders are forced to be on us all the time in order to retain their power and how we feel about them is fundamental to them putting bread on their table. The consequences for the misuse of their positions can only really be done at the ballot box.
I know there are exceptions for democracy to take a back seat, but by and large I believe in it passionately as evidenced by Confelicity’s ‘Undivided Democracy’ voting system where every member must agree unanimously before a policy can make the manifesto.
And so I urge Southend residents to show their interest in where they live and in democracy and take two minutes of their time to register their want for our councillors to do everything in their power to ensure the elections go ahead in 2026.
I believe so much that Confelicity is the right party to represent us locally. National parties must follow the party line whereas we are governed only by the residents of Southend. We will campaign strongly and we look forward to meeting residents at our rally in Southend High Street on May 10th between 10am and 2pm. However, if Reform is the favoured choice in 2026, so be it - thats democracy.
We would never dream of cancelling an election if we thought we couldn’t win, and I sincerely hope Labour, Tories and every other councillor who haven’t yet signed the petition, resist the temptation to do so.
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