One of the unintended but interesting consequences of this blog is that I am now seen as a "resource" for any activist who needs help or advice, from across the UK. I don't mind this at all, in fact it is flattering to be asked and I like to help where I can. I do, however, always check that the enquirer is a Conservative, having spent some time emailing a very nice lady who asked for advice on her election expenses, only to find she was a failed UKIP candidate.
I will often receive five or six emails per day, mainly from activists in seats where there is no agent or organising secretary. I fully support the need to target resources into the seats we must win in 2015, but my heart does go out to those activists in Associations which are not on the 40:40 target list, but where we are fighting to retain (ort re-establish) a local government base.
One of the things which really fascinates me is the range of questions and topics raised; a real random snapshot into the heart and soul of the Conservative Party in the country. For example, tonight's batch of enquiries include:
1. A hard-working activist who wanted to know about imprints on Facebook and other social media during a by-elecion
2. A Deputy Chairman (Fundraising) from Lancashire who had been trying for two days to work out how to print addresses onto the embedded draw ticket labels.
3. Someone in Liverpool wanting to know how her sister, who lives in Benalmadena, can get a proxy vote form.
4. A chap from New York who is moving to Kent and asking for a local contact for him to join the Party and help with campaigning, and
5. Someone wanting to know if the Association's election insurance policy covered medical expenses for volunteers who have been bitten by a dog
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Perhaps I should set-up a premium line phone service. Press #1 for raffles and mailshots, #2 for Mandatory Selection Rules. #3 for ......
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