Claire_Wright_(politician)

Claire Wright (politician)

Claire Wright (politician)

Independent candidate in the 2019 United Kingdom General Election

Claire Wright[1] is a British politician. She was a Devon county councillor from 2013 to 2021 and stood as an independent for East Devon in the 2015, 2017, and 2019 United Kingdom general elections, coming second each time.[2]

Quick Facts Devon County Councillorfor Otter Valley Ottery St. Mary Rural (2013–2017), Preceded by ...

Career

Wright started working in the National Health Service in a public relations role in 2001, served on the Ottery St Mary Town Council and was elected to Devon County Council in 2013 with 74 percent of the vote.[3][4] She stood as a parliamentary candidate in the 2015, 2017, and 2019 elections, receiving increasing shares of the vote.[5] Wright's main policy interests are the NHS, social care and preserving the environment,[3][6] with her manifesto based on a community survey.[7]

The East Devon constituency has only ever been held by the Conservative Party and used to be considered a safe seat. With growing support in the 2017 general election for Wright, polling indicated that the seat had become marginal.[3][8] Queen guitarist Brian May endorsed Wright in 2017,[7] while actor Hugh Grant and reporter Martin Bell endorsed Wright at the 2019 election.[5][9] However, in the December 2019 election, Wright lost to the Conservative Simon Jupp by nearly 7,000 votes.[10] Asked by local radio if she would run again, Wright was unsure.[11] In 2021, she announced she would not stand in the 2021 County Council elections.[12]

In Diary of an MP's Wife (2020), the memoirs of Sasha Swire, Wright is frequently referred to by the name "Claire Wrong".[13]

For the next UK general election in the seats of Exmouth and Exeter East and Honiton and Sidmouth, Wright has endorsed the campaigns of the prospective Liberal Democrat candidates.[14][15]

Personal life

Wright lives in Ottery St Mary in East Devon.[3]

Electoral record

2019 general election

More information Party, Candidate ...

2017 general election

[17]

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2015 general election

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References

  1. [1]
    "13 December 2019 - Conservative elected as MP for East Devon". East Devon. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  2. [2]
    Clark, Daniel (2 November 2019). "Independent who hopes to end 150 years of Conservatives in East Devon". Express & Echo. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  3. [3]
    Chakelian, Anoosh (29 November 2019). "Rural revolt: The independent rebellion threatening Tory Devon". New Statesman. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  4. [4]
    Bennett, Asa (4 May 2015). "Meet the Ottery independent candidate who could take one of the Tories' safest seats". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  5. [5]
    Parsley, David (29 November 2019). "Disgruntled Tories may not vote in Devon, giving independent candidate a chance". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  6. [6]
    Capurro, Daniel (23 November 2019). "Hot seat: East Devon - Can Independent take Tory seat after 150 years?". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  7. [7]
    Smith, Colleen (13 September 2019). "All eyes on Devon's Claire Wright ahead of General Election". Devon Live. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  8. [8]
    "Poll suggests Liberal Democrat defectors set to lose in General Election". Evening Express. Press Association. 28 November 2019. Retrieved 1 December 2019.
  9. [9]
    "Martin Bell OBE backs Independent Claire Wright to be East Devon MP". East Devon News. 3 November 2019. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  10. [10]
    "East Devon parliamentary constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
  11. [11]
    "Independent Wright 'incredibly sad' after defeat". Radio Exe. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  12. [12]
    "Claire Wright quits politics". Sidmouth Herald. 9 April 2021. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  13. [13]
    Semple, Sandra (28 September 2020). "Sasha Swire's 'Diary of an MP's Wife' : superiority, sex and sneering". West Country Voices.
  14. [14]
    https://twitter.com/ClaireWrightInd/status/1761416515042062563?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet
  15. [15]
    https://twitter.com/ClaireWrightInd/status/1685724708040237057
  16. [16]
    "Statement of Persons Nominated" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 November 2019.
  17. [17]
    "Devon East parliamentary constituency - Election 2017" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  18. [18]
    "Statement of persons nominated, notice of poll and situation of polling stations: East Devon" (PDF). East Devon District Council. 11 May 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  19. [19]
    "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  20. [20]
    Labour, East Devon (16 February 2015). "East Devon unanimously and warmly selected Steve Race as their PPC.. Agent Ray Davison said: ' Steve is in every way an MP to be.'".
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