An election is in the air and we have a chance to grab real revival - Alex Cole-Hamilton

I’ve written before about how much I love elections- I wake up early every morning of the campaign eager to join the fray. You might not have noticed but we’re in the foothills of the biggest election in the political cycle. By biggest, I mean by number of people standing.

Thousands of candidates will, over the coming weeks, ask their communities for the opportunity to serve in council chambers the country over. As festivals of democracy go, you don’t get much bigger than the local authority elections. And for Liberals these elections represent a real opportunity for revival.

Last Wednesday was nomination day. It may not seem that significant, but who’s standing and who wins will affect you more than you might imagine. On 5th May, the people of Scotland will elect the councillors that will serve them in local government in every ward of Scotland’s 32 local authorities for the next five years.

From the potholes in your street to life-qualifying school exams, your local councillors hold sway over much of what makes our society tick.

Voters will go to the poll on May 5 in Scotland's local elections. PIC: Habibur Rahman.

Are these elections shaping up to be anything special? Well it’s hard to say, but if you know how to look at them the lists of nominations make for interesting reading about the state of politics in Scotland.

For a start, I’m delighted to say the Scottish Lib Dems are fielding more candidates than at any point since 2007. This election, 280,000 more Scots will have the chance to vote for a Liberal Democrat than in 2017. We are the biggest challenger to the SNP in Edinburgh, running more candidates than the Conservatives, Labour or the Greens. These are undeniable signs of growth and renewal.

What’s also clear is that the SNP has an enthusiasm problem.

All told the governing party is standing nearly 80 fewer candidates than last time. They aren’t standing anyone under 30 in the whole of the Highland council area and they have already thrown away four held council seats where they won last time but this time just couldn’t find anyone to stand.

While the SNP might not have much enthusiasm for these elections, we’ve got it in bucket-loads. Liberal Democrats are thrilled by the idea of what community can mean. When you elect a Lib Dem at any level of government you get someone who’ll sort your bins and work to bring down an incompetent nationalist government in the same afternoon. We sweat the small stuff while fighting for big things too, like access to decent affordable housing, or the local response to the climate crisis.

This election isn’t about the break up of the U.K. instead it’s about the services around you, the way your community is run and the pound in your pocket. That’s what you’ll get from us in this campaign a steadfast commitment to serving you and those around you as best we can.

If a Liberal revival is to happen in Scotland, it will start in local government. We don’t have success handed to us on a plate, we have to win it door by door and street by street and everywhere I’ve been in Scotland in this campaign so far, I see signs of that revival.

-Alex Cole-Hamiton is the Liberal Democrat MSP for Edinburgh Western

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