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Take candidates for a cycle ride
You know exactly what it’s like to cycle in your area and what the council needs to do to improve things. At election time, you want to convert local candidates into insightful allies, who’ll always be there for your cause if they’re elected. Talking and writing are good, but taking candidates out for a cycle ride might clinch their support because it prompts a more personal, direct understanding of local problems and the schemes that could solve them. Here are some thoughts from Gwenda Owen, our engagement office in Wales (pictured left below), who’s recently chaperoned some of her local candidates round her ward and taken them to meet other active travel advocates along the way.
a. Why do it? Apart from winning, candidates usually want to change things for the better. What ‘better’ looks like may be subject to debate, but it makes sense for people who are running for election to listen to their voters. It’s not a mammoth task for local candidates to research the characteristics of their electorate and neighbourhood. After all, they’re standing to represent a relatively small patch: across the UK, the average number of people in a ward is 5,500.
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