Virginia Branney, the Labour Party candidate for Fell ward said:

Our doorstep conversations with residents are showing that after years of Liberal Democrat domination, there is increasing openness to having fresh voices on the Council from Labour and the Green Party. There is growing support for the view that this is urgently needed for the Town Council to make progress on tackling big issues such as the shortage of affordable housing, climate change and improving traffic management in Kendal.

Tactical voting is a barrier faced by Labour candidates in parliamentary and local elections. However, Virginia Branney said:

There are no Conservative Party candidates standing in the Kendal Town Council elections, so there is simply no danger of ‘letting in a Tory’ if you vote Labour. While recent parliamentary elections have reinforced tactical voting, local elections are different. The record shows that the Conservative Party has not had any district or county councillors in Kendal for many years.

Town councils have fewer functions than the higher level councils. But they will be more important in the future with the move to unitary local government:

The Town Council elections in May are particularly important. With the arrival of the Westmorland and Furness Council and the abolition of the district council next year, town councillors will be a key link between the level of local government that is closest to residents and the top tier of local government.