Charlies Davis, a former local councillor in Greenwich and fraud specialist, has been selected as the Conservative candidate for the new seat of Eltham and Chislehurst. The seat is comprised of 86 per cent of the current Labour seat of Eltham, and 29 per cent of Bob Neill’s current seat of Bromley and Chislehurst. Electoral Calculus, in their infinite wisdom, currently give it a 93 per cent of going to Labour.
A local Conservative source described the selection as “very predictable”. Davis it was “pretty clear Davis was the frontrunner”. He was up against Gavin Haran, a former Treasury adviser and asset manager who stood for Deptford in 2019, and Samia Hersi, a policy advisor who has previously worked for Gillian Keegan and has yet to stand for parliament. Both candidates stayed after the selection and were seen as future MPs.
But it was the case that, according to a local source, Davis was a “hard-working local champion” and that “no candidate could have shifted local members”. Nevertheless, some local disquiet was expressed for his previous backing for a second referendum on Brexit. But members “knew what they wanted” and got it on the first ballot. This was “not a controversial” selection and was “very good-natured” – even if it was something of a “coronation”.
As ever, contact myself at william@conservativehome.com with any candidates and selections information you might have.