Conservative Party in Desperate Need of 200 Election Candidates

The Tory party is scrambling to find candidates for almost a third of constituencies after Rishi Sunak’s decision to keep many of his party’s senior figures in the dark about his decision to call a snap election.

It is understood that when Mr Sunak made his rain-sodden announcement on the steps of Downing Street on Wednesday afternoon, candidates for 191 of the 650 seats still needed to be selected.

Since then, more vacancies have occurred, with a number of Tory MPs announcing they will retire, with the total now standing at 76, breaking the 1997 record of 75.

Party chiefs are desperately appealing to prospective candidates to put themselves forward for seats—many of which are projected to lose heavily—with the Conservatives expected to still be putting up batches of ads for constituencies into the weekend.

Political commentator Sir Anthony Seldon, biographer of six prime ministers, said, “Surprise is always a smart tactic for a general, but it’s the enemy who should be surprised, not your own side. The Conservatives are going to have to move PDQ to fill their remaining empty seats to show that they are truly a national party.”

Ex-cabinet minister David Jones

Ex-cabinet minister David Jones said that he was “not sure why” the button had been pressed for an election “without close to a full slate of candidates being chosen.”.

He said, “It is a huge commitment [to be a candidate]. People’s lives are literally going to be turned upside down. That is even more true for those who are being selected now.Some will have had at least two years of preparation. The selected ones, however, will have very little time to get ready.

The Independent has seen a list of 93 seats advertised to pre-vetted people on the Tory potential candidate list, with at least one more batch to come at the weekend.

The party has been partly caught out by the number of retirees by MPs, including Greg Clark in Tunbridge Wells and Sir David Evennett in Bexleyheath and Crayford on Friday, as well as defections.

Just stepped down

On the list are Dover and Deal, along with Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, the seats of defectors Natalie Elphicke and Dr. Dan Poulter.

Others include Stratford upon Avon, where former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has just stepped down.

Then there are scores of Labour-safe seats where victory is unlikely. Sir Keir Starmer’s Holborn constituency is one of them.

Underscoring the importance of the decisions by the party before the nomination deadline of June 7, former London minister Paul Scully said: “We have to remember that these candidate selections are not just for this election but about the shape of the party for the next decade. These are really important decisions about how the party goes forward.”

In comparison to the Tories, the opposition parties seemed to be ready for the election, despite the shock announcement by Mr Sunak on Wednesday.

Short of candidates

Labour was short of around 80 candidates and only about 10 in battleground seats, including Durham North and Halifax. The party said all its battleground seats would be selected by May 31 and the rest by June 4.

Before the declaration, the Liberal Democrats had already chosen 564 candidates, encompassing the entirety of their 80 top-tier targets.

Reform UK, meanwhile, had 500 candidates approved of the 630 they wanted to field. Richard Tice, Reform’s leader, said: “It appears we were much better organised than the Tories.”

One Conservative candidate hopeful, who has been trying to get a seat for months, said, “There was no need for this.” The process has been painfully slow. It’s a real mess.”

Tory selections are now governed by “by-election rules.” Consequently, CCHQ draws up a shortlist of three potential candidates, who are then sent to an emergency meeting of the constituency party.

In a meeting led by pollster Lord Hayward, a new representative for Maidenhead will be chosen tomorrow. Previously held by Theresa May, the seat is now up for grabs.

I remember being in CCHQ

Lord Hayward said he remembered being in CCHQ in 2017 when Mrs. May called the snap election and the party had to similarly scramble to fill seats. Additionally, he stated: “The issue at hand this time is not primarily the quantity, as numerous Labour seats are secure.”

The problem is late decisions to step down in seats the party needs to hold on to.”

It has been suggested that the Conservative Campaign Headquarters is advocating for centrist candidates in an attempt to influence the outcome of a potential leadership contest. The strategy aims to prevent the rise of candidates like Suella Braverman or Robert Jenrick as successors to Rishi Sunak following a loss.

Former Brexit minister Lord Frost is reportedly on the “deferred candidates” list, preventing him from applying for a seat. This claim has been denied by Mr. Sunak.

According to a list sent to pre-vetted prospective MPs by Tory election chiefs (and seen by The Independent), these are the first 93 seats for which the Conservatives are looking for candidates, from safer seats to no-hopers: