Distrust, disappointment and a lack of accountability are the reasons behind Salford’s low turnout and the surge in support for fringe parties, according to candidates.
UKIP candidate for Pendlebury, Paul Doyle, said that the electorate’s growing dissatisfaction with what the mainstream parties have to offer has bolstered support for the party.
Turnout in Salford was just 29.58%, and as the results are yet to be revealed, Mr Doyle believes that UKIP has a good chance in making gains in Salford, as they have in Bolton.
He told MM: “We’re very confident. It’s certainly been growing in Salford for the last three years.
“Three years ago, nobody knew who UKIP were and obviously that’s paying dividends, not just on a national level, it’s also resonating into local level as well.
“People are voting UKIP because they feel let down. They feel let down by the existing establishment in Salford, which is Labour.
“I’m an ex-Labour supporter and I felt let down by Labour.”
Mr Doyle was in the army for 12 years and argued that Labour have not stuck up for Salfordians.
He said: “We can bring a bit of positivity for the people of Salford and belief back in local politics because a lot people don’t trust local politicians right now, a lot of people don’t even know who their local councillors are.
“There’s certainly no trust and we’re looking to bring that trust back to Salford.
“In terms of the turnout, I believe it was quite high in certain wards and quite low in others – it’s a bit hit and miss. Today is the day and we’ll see what happens.”
Valour Party chairman Glenn Croston, who is standing for Irlam, said that people were unsure about voting Labour and were seeking out alternatives instead.
He told MM that Valour came about as a result of a number of Facebook pages which are primarily aimed at ex-servicemen and women.
RESULTS PENDING: MM’s Mike Taylor chats to Valour’s Glenn Croston
He said: “It was political and, over a period of months, we thought wouldn’t it be nice to get together and see how we stand.
“We thought we had something that we could develop and after a couple more meetings and getting a few more people together, it started to grow on the Facebook page.
“So we thought we would go ahead and register it, although this I think has come a year too early for me.
“But there is a lot of unpopularity and, if not nothing else, this will give me a run for next year in how to prepare, what you really need in terms of man power and finance to back it up – so it’s a big learning curve.”
Despite being well received on the doorsteps Mr Croston conceded that what people say, and what they do at the ballot box are not necessarily the same thing.
He said: “I’ve been speaking to people on their doorsteps since Monday morning – it’s a question of apathy because people just don’t know why they should vote.
“There are also personal issues people have with the Labour candidate, the Labour council and the mayor. They were saying they don’t want to vote Labour.
“I’ve got a chance, but obviously what they say to you on their doorstep and what they actually do at the polling station are two different things.
“I think people want somebody who is going to be a bit more accountable to them.
“One of the common complaints has been that the guy who is standing again has not been onto the estates and people haven’t seen him.
“There a mixture of issues, so perhaps people think we know who this guy is, we know where he lives and we see him all the time – perhaps he is the guy who can fight our corner a bit better.”
“I think Valour can bring that accountability element and also, because I’m not Labour, I’m not going to keep my mouth shut if I don’t agree with something because it’s perhaps in my interest.
“It’s actually in my interests to question everything and if I don’t get the answers to my questions, which I believe has happened in the past, I can go back to the people in charge until we start to get some answers.
“I wasn’t impressed by the turnout yesterday – apparently the postal vote was quite high, but at the end of the day, I thought there would be around 1,000 people turn up across the three polling stations I went to.”
Despite the low turnout and the results revealed later today Mr Croston is optimistic that the party will make some sort of progress.
He said:”If we’re not successful today, then the best we can hope for is that we’ve made a dent, we’ve made a point and we’ll give it another go next year.
“We can then tell other guys, whether they’re Valour or independent, what they need to be able to do and try and get them the support they need because you can’t do it on your own.”
