Warning – hastily written so may be edited later.
There are some serious reasons for backing Ben which I am not going to talk about here because a) lack of time and b) it’s dull – these include his solid, well thought out policy papers; his long term dedication to CF at grass roots level; his experience working with MPs & MEPs; and the fact he, unlike many, has a career in his own right outside CF.
These are bonuses but not why I am backing Ben. Ben and I have been friendly acquaintances since 2006 when I met him at an action day in Guildford (because Ben campaigns at local level at times other than in the run up to an election…) and then again when he travelled down to Exeter to meet EUCF members at our ball. When I took on Surrey Area Chairman Ben was one of a solid handful of people I could trust to attend every action day and every social.
When Ben decided to run for CF Chairman I wasn’t sure who to back – I didn’t know Ben outside of action days and the odd party so didn’t feel a particular loyalty– so I watched for a few weeks to see how it progressed. It became obvious very quickly that Ben’s commitment to CF and the party was eclipsed only by his desire to visit as many branches as possible and return CF to its members.
The way Ben has been attacked throughout this campaign is appalling. The dirty reverse smear campaign fuelled by anonymous comments on blogs and insidious claims by his former opposition has repeatedly put him in the terrible position of being unable to defend his clear record and clean campaign – over the past few months I have not seen a single negative remark made by Ben or his team despite the full on abuse he has received. Ben has at all times remained (if not calm behind the scenes) outwardly calm and incredibly dignified – he has repeatedly reached out to other candidates to maintain friendships and keep it clean. This is why I am voting for Ben. He has the ideas, dedication and commitment to make a fantastic and unifying chairman for CF but more importantly he is a genuinely wonderful person who I personally feel very lucky to now count as a close friend.
Back Howlett, you won’t regret it.
