A Personal Reflection: Dan Bewley, Labour’s 2024 General Election candidate for Bath

I want to pull back the curtain a bit on what it’s really like to run in a general election as part of this changed Labour Party. 

I was privileged to be the candidate in Bath, a beautiful city where conversations with people made it clear how important it was to get a change of Government. Traditionally, Bath has been closely contested by the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives, but not this time. 

Many voters decided to look away from the tactical voting websites, instead voting with their hearts. The outcome of this meant we were able to come second for the first time since 1970, beating the Conservative Party in Bath for the first time ever. 

It takes a clear strategy that everyone buys into, with a great team with each person playing their role. My campaign included your traditional tactics, knocking on doors, debating with other candidates at hustings and getting stakes into people’s gardens. This hard work on the ground is key to setting up Labour for success locally both for future general elections and the next set of council elections. 

A few highlights that stand out to me are: 

• Knocking on my first door to ask a voter to trust me personally 

• A spectacular hustings with all other candidates in Bath Abbey with circa 350 people in the audience 

• Sharing tales of the campaign so far with Sadiq Khan on the doorsteps, reaching every last voter 

• Speaking with other candidates and hearing about what has motivated them and what their priorities are 

Overall, the result in Bath was fantastic, showing that Labour voters really can vote for change and more widely, Keir Starmer and his team led the party to a fantastic result and to the South West Labour team helping turn candidates into MPs as Labour becomes the largest party in the South West for the first time ever. 

To conclude, I need to give out some thanks to those who have supported me to do all of this. I wouldn’t have been able to gain so many incredible experiences, grow my confidence and learn so much. I am obviously missing many people, but some that I want to shout out are Kevin McKeever and the Lowick team, Labour Party staff who always work so hard and Ellie Anderson, who has been supporting me every step of the way.