We are delighted that Anita Jones has won a by-election for Hythe Town Council, while our candidate for the Elham Valley division of Kent County Council, Doug Wade, came a close second to the Conservatives. The elections had been postponed from May 6 following the death of the Labour candidate.
Anita, representing Hythe East, joins six other Green Hythe town councillors who control the council with a Lib Dem councillor and two independents.
She has lived in Hythe for 16 years and as a child, is a professional musician and co-director of a local business, a scout leader at Trident Explorer Scout Unit (1st Hythe) and local coordinator for the Kent Scouts Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme.
Says Anita: “Thank you to the voters of Hythe East for electing me to the Town Council, and all those who campaigned on my behalf. I am thrilled to join the six councillors elected in 2019, who have been doing a fantastic job for our town. I love living and working in Hythe, and being part of our vibrant community, and can’t wait to begin this exciting new role.”
Doug Wade, one of the existing Green town councillors and also a district councillor since 2019, was the party’s candidate in Elham Valley.
Says Doug: “I am proud to have come a close second to the Conservatives. The fact that I did so really demonstrates how the Green Party’s message is hitting home. I am obviously disappointed not to be joining the four Green Party county councillors elected last month but hope that the Conservatives running Kent County Council will engage with and listen to them and to the message our supporters are sending.
“People want change. They want to see action, not just words, to protect our countryside and open spaces and to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. People also want an end to cruel cuts affecting the most vulnerable and more support for our rural communities.
“Thank you to all those who voted for me and to the team who campaigned so vigorously on my behalf.”
