Why I Backed a Winner, and Why I Couldn't Vote for John Lee

So it’s over until the next election in a few week’s time, and if the local elections in England are anything to go by then we all apparently voted the way we did because we’re so fed up with the way the government and the opposition have handled Brexit.

If truth be known Brexit never entered into my thoughts when I cast my vote in the Suffield Park ward of North Norfolk yesterday afternoon, and neither did party allegiances. I voted for the person who I thought would be a good representative for the area, someone who has a track record of putting other people first, and that person was the Liberal Democrat’s candidate Emma Spagnola.

Despite what now-former Conservative Party Councillor John Lee may think, He didn't lose my vote because of the way his party has handled the Brexit debacle. He didn't lose my vote because of his party’s failure at national and international level. I didn’t vote for him because I simply don’t think he’s done a very good job.

Mr. Lee has gone on record about all the things he’s done for Cromer. That’s all well and good, but the things he’s done all seem to have been for the Cromer ward, and not for Suffield Park, the area he was meant to represent.

I simply cannot recall anything he’s ever done for the Suffield Park area. In the ten years or so he’s served as a local councillor I’ve never seen him campaigning in the area, and in the run-up to yesterday’s vote the only time I heard anything from him was a few lines about the election in the North Norfolk News.

Mr. Lee also has something of a reputation for throwing the proverbial tantrum when things don’t go his way, such as the times when he’s apparently walked out of council meetings when others have disagreed with him. Then, of course, there were the events of this past November when, as leader of the Conservative-led council he lost a vote of no confidence.

I just couldn’t vote for the man because to me it seems that he was only “in it” for himself, and not for the people he represented.

Which is why I voted for Mrs. Spagnola. She’s been a tireless campaigner for a number of causes in the past few years, and I’m sure she’ll represent the people of Suffield Park in much the same way.

So if Mr. Lee wants to continue to blame his defeat on the national political situation then he can by all means. But perhaps he should look a little closer to home.