AN independent borough councillor, who quit Labour earlier this year, will vote for his former party in tomorrow’s general election.
Cllr Dan Price, who serves Great Sankey North and Whittle Hall, resigned from Labour in April over its stance on Brexit.
But he confirmed he will vote tactically and back Labour’s Warrington South candidate Faisal Rashid at the ballot box.
The politician also urged fellow Remainers to vote tactically to avoid a ‘hard Brexit that only a minority of the public want and voted for’.
Cllr Price said: “As polls suggest, a Brexit-backing Tory majority could be secured with 43 per cent of the public supporting them – far less than the vote in 2016, it’s vital those wanting a second referendum vote tactically in this election, as a hung Parliament and a People’s Vote is a very real possibility.
“That means in Warrington South I’ll be voting for Labour’s Faisal Rashid as the only credible candidate that can win, who backs a second referendum.
“I know the Lib Dem candidate, Ryan Bate, would make an excellent MP and as someone who left the Labour Party because of its leadership and years of confusion over Brexit, it’s fair to say I’ve not taken this decision lightly.
“But now is not the time for holding grudges or tribal politics, there’s far too much at stake.
“And for those who worry about tactical voting leading to Corbyn as PM, I’m certain a hung Parliament will still be led by Johnson – terrible as it may sound.
“Under Corbyn’s leadership, Labour simply won’t get the coalition necessary to push the Tories into opposition.
“However, it’s entirely possible, that by voting tactically, we’ll finally have the numbers in Parliament to amend Johnson’s Withdrawal Bill and deliver a confirmatory referendum – that’s the prize I’ll be voting for and I hope you can too.”
Conservative Robert Jenrick, secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, hailed Prime Minister Boris Johnson for securing a ‘better deal’ from the EU during his visit to Warrington on Tuesday.
He added: “I’ve loved working with Boris, I think he’s one of life’s great optimists, he’s got a real can-do attitude.
“He has developed a very exciting domestic agenda around investing in the police, health service, education, housing and there’s so much that we can achieve as a country, if we can just get Brexit done, stop the squabbling in Parliament and move forward with confidence and optimism.
“That’s what I really hope Thursday will bring.”
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