The by-election in Sweyne Park Ward following the sad death of Gerry Mockford was a fairly low-key affair, with the campaigning not as intense as usual. Joan Mockford won her late husband’s seat, but we were pleased to see our candidate Lindsay Frend come second in what is traditionally Labour’s strongest area in Rayleigh. It was also very good to have a candidate who is “only” 30 years old (until recent years it wasn’t unusual to have candidates under 35, nowadays it is).
The results were:
Joan Mockford Conservative 310
Lindsay Frend Liberal Democrat 112
Labour 95