Leading up to the election in Porth and Tretherras on the 23rd of April, volunteers from across Cornwall have joined together in support of local Green party candidate Abbey Hubbucks. She contests a previously Reform-held Cornwall Council seat; and represents a shift for Newquay communities. It is clear that the Green Party has already resonated with people across Cornwall – particularly with those who are willing to be hopeful in the face of the far right.
Over the past month, volunteers have met in Newquay Orchard every weekend, ready to canvass, door-knock and deliver leaflets for the Greens. These volunteers have toughed the diverse political landscape of Newquay to campaign for change in Porth and Tretherras. In the town that saw antifascists defend an asylum hotel from fascist agitators in 2023, politics can sometimes be complicated. But hopes are high for an area dominated by Green councillors.
They include a diverse range of people; from local teachers to lifelong Green Party members, families with children and university students, to just about anyone with an interest in improving their community. Some are Newquay locals, but others have travelled across Cornwall to support Abbey’s campaign. This election felt pivotal to everyone- it is the moment to prove to the rest of the UK that progressive politics can win big in Cornwall.
When asked why they were willing to sacrifice their weekends for a political campaign, most of the volunteers were exceedingly modest. Many answered that ‘it just felt like the right thing to do’, or that it was ‘good to get out and about for a couple of hours, and the dog needed a walk anyways’. One volunteer simply said ‘why not? What else would I do on a Saturday morning?’
The Greens have shaken up Cornwall’s politics in recent weeks, at the vanguard of social and ecological campaigns amid a busy by-election. In parish and town councils across the region, they have opposed Cornwall Council’s plans to reintroduce glyphosate to treat weeds on public highways. In an equally popular campaign, they have sought no-confidence votes against utilities giant South West Water at 213 local councils, with the aid of Mebyon Kernow. In both campaigns they have seen resounding success, with Cornwall Council retreating on glyphosate plans on Tuesday’s Full Council meeting, and local councillors getting behind campaigns to oust SWW.
Underpinning it all is a deep belief that the far right can and will be successfully challenged, both in Cornwall, and across the UK. One volunteer confidently told me that what we were seeing now was ‘the right wing’s last hurrah’. Considering Reform’s dwindling power in Cornwall, and the Green Party’s major growth in membership over the last year, it could be said that this optimism was well-placed.
The radical power of hope has been discussed by many people, but I have never felt it as strongly as I did while sitting in Newquay Orchard and listening to the volunteer’s stories of where, how, and why they ended up leafletting for the Greens. Regardless of the final result in Porth and Tretherras, the feeling of community built during the campaign is proof enough of the power of progressive politics.
Image via: Cornwall Greens.
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