Steve Brine, former Party Employee, selected to fight Winchester

Steve Brine makes his point at 'The Big Event' on 14th November.

picture copyright Winchester Conservatives

Winchester Conservatives have selected Stephen Brine (32) to be their candidate to fight the next general election. Steve Brine was adopted by party members at a meeting on Wednesday at the Stripe Theatre at the University of Winchester (sic). Steve was on the fabled 'A-list' but also had strong connections with the area having lived in the locality. A former Area Campaign Director for Hampshire Conservatives (Agent on steroids to you and me), responsible for running the target seats campaign for the Tory Party at the last general election.

The Winchester constituency will have radically different boundaries at the next general election but the retirement of retirement of shamed Lib-Dem Mark Oaten means that the Conservatives still have a reasonable prospect of capturing the seat.

www.ukpollingreport.co.uk publish the notional 2005 result on the new boundaries as

Liberal Democrat: 27937 (51.6%)

Conservative: 19893 (36.7%)

Labour: 4793 (8.9%)

Other: 1514 (2.8%)

(the actual 2005 results were: Conservative 23749, Labour 4782, Liberal Democrat: 31225)

while Electoral Calculus are predicting a Conservative gain in the seat at the next general election with a lead of circa 3% over the Lib-Dems.

Steve beat two A-Listers; Emma Webster (Southampton University graduate) and Antonia Cox (Evening Standard leader writer and former investment banker) as well as local candidate and leader of Winchester City Council George Beckett to clinch the selection.