When Guido was the first to break the news that the LibDem leadership election may be delayed because of Coronavirus he was heartbroken. It was a joyous surprise, therefore, to now hear their leadership election is back on. In fully digital form…
The leadership race – for which there is currently only one hat in the ring – will kick off on July 30th, featuring “online hustings and online voting”, with the new leader being announced one month later on August 26th ahead of their virtual September conference.
So far, Layla Moran is the only declared candidate, having been criticised by acting leader Ed Davey for focusing on her leadership campaign in spite of the pandemic. Guido understands Davey – who has now been interim leader for over two weeks longer than Jo Swinson’s tenure – is also expected to launch a campaign (originally scheduled to launch after the cancelled local elections) which will be a “rehash of what he did during Jo Swinson campaign”, with some added extras such as “decarbonising the economy”. By complete coincidence, today Davey has also tabled a vainglorious bill calling for a two-year extension to the Transition Period that will play well with the base…
