Who's next?

[philbo]

We had an active Conservative at work, who said, in answer to our criticisms of Stokes, that he had not come over like that when they were interviewing the potential candidates. We suggested that they should deselect him at the next election; he said we can’t do that, it is too damaging to the party.
It appears the party is more impprtant than the country.

Unfortunately, this is the attitude of most local party types: the whole "he didn't come over like that when interviewing" is a pathetic excuse, because (apart from national party catastrophes like we've just had) for most seats in the country that committee is choosing the local MP, and it's easy to appear as the person they want to see for half an hour.

I don't think it's only "party more important than country": the people on these committees also don't want to admit they made a mistake.

Once selected & especially once elected, the barrier for removing an MP is very high.. I wonder who set those rules

[TopBadger]

Seriously? Jenrick tops the first poll? Just when you think they can sink no lower.

[IvanV]

Seriously? Jenrick tops the first poll? Just when you think they can sink no lower.

That was my initial reaction. But then I remembered that, with the present candidate list, inevitably they must sink lower. For the only candidate who isn't lower than they have already sunk is Tugendhat, and he has no chance. It seems to me from the first ballot that the winner is likely to be one of Jenrick, Badenoch or Cleverly.

This is actually what some plausible commentators said would happen. It is the common reaction of political parties in such a pickle to start by staying loyal to the very thing that destroyed them, and so initially react in entirely the wrong way. It will only be after the next period continues the disaster that maybe some group will be able to start to reconstruct a sensible party instead of Blukip.

[Sciolus]

Yes, it's what they did 1997-200whatever, though I don't think any of that lot then were as atrocious as the current candidates.

[Grumble]

Yes, it's what they did 1997-200whatever, though I don't think any of that lot then were as atrocious as the current candidates.

There is a smaller pool of worse candidates. I looked at the numbers they got and laughed because I had forgotten how few MPs they have.