By Linda Wall

There are 461 independent candidates in this election. Transform is only endorsing a small proportion of them. The independents who we’re backing tend to be well rooted in community groups and based local campaigns. They’re standing for reasons other than self-interest.  From Transform’s point of view, we want to be a part of progressive movements in the areas where we have members. Some of these campaigns could lay a foundation for future left organisation in towns and cities, and we can help to make that happen.

“We are not independent of the movement. We have grown within and are part of the great movement for Palestinian freedom.”

Michael Lavalette

The movement is great, but uneven: its strength and its political character vary between one city and the next.

Michael Lavalette himself was propelled into standing by the movement. Here he describes very well how the conversations about standing a candidate took place over a period of months. Then, after Galloway’s victory in Rochdale, “a group of activists– all deeply embedded in the Palestine solidarity movement – decided we should hold a constituency-wide, open public meeting to discuss whether we should stand a candidate and, if so, who we should select.” Two nominations were put forward, and a packed hustings meeting selected him as the candidate for Preston. 

Having a candidate who directly represents sections of the local movement and the local community counts for a lot, especially at a time when the Labour Party NEC is interfering so much with democratic processes for parliamentary selection, often riding roughshod over the wishes of local members.

Redbridge Community Action Group was formed as a reaction to the support given by the two main parties to Israel’s war on Gaza, their spokesman saying that “Trust has irretrievably broken down between British Muslims and the Labour party.” In January they hosted a hustings event with 200 people attending, which selected 23 year old Leanne Mohamad as parliamentary candidate for Ilford North. Mohamad has since fallen out with the RCAG, but the strength of her connection to the movement is undeniable. She’s raised over £50,000 on her crowdfunder, and has large numbers turning out every week to help with campaigning.

In March, Tanushka Marah was selected to stand in Hove & Portslade after a well attended hustings meeting organised by Brighton Queers for Palestine heard from two potential candidates. Her crowdfunder has raised a very impressive £8,500.

“The move to stand an independent candidate in Tottenham,” writes Transform Exec member Doug Thorpe, “came from anger in the Tottenham and Haringey Palestine Action campaign at Lammy’s support for Israel’s genocide in Gaza, combined with discussions that had been taking place between ex-labour party members (including councillors) about putting up a candidate.

We decided to use a stripped-down version of the assembly model suggested by Assemble (and similar to the model used by Andrew Feinstein in Camden) to test support for an election campaign. A first assembly in May was attended by well over a hundred local people. The assembly decided the main issues for the campaign – Palestine, Housing, Health/NHS, Policing, public service spending (not arms spending) and action on the climate emergency. In ward groups people discussed what kind of candidate they wanted. The Assembly endorsed the proposal to stand a candidate.

The early calling of the election cut short the process of selecting a candidate. The organising group selected Nandita Lal as the proposed candidate, and her candidacy has been endorsed by the Haringey Independent Socialist Group of Councillors, Collective, Assemble, The Muslim Vote, Transform and Gik-Der a local Turkish & Kurdish migrants organisation.”

Being rooted is only a first step. Building a strong local profile and winning trust requires time and patient work. But at a time when the Labour Party is promising little and delivering less, is imposing candidates whose connections to the community are often not very strong, and is shall we say less focused on community work than in past years, there are real opportunities for rooted local campaigns to make an impact.