Election campaigning in Major and Cromwell's town

Huntingdon has had some famous former MP's including Oliver Cromwell and John Major

If you stand in Huntingdon's Market Square, you immediately notice the town's historic links with Parliament.

Just off a side street is the Cromwell Museum, dedicated to Oliver Cromwell, a Huntingdon MP in the 17th Century, who was Lord Protector after the Civil War victory over the Royalists and the execution of Charles I.

In more recent times it was the seat of the former Conservative Prime Minister John Major.

The latest Conservative MP Jonathan Djanogly decided not to seek re-election, so the constituency will send a new face to the House of Commons after 4 July.

The Cambridgeshire constituency has undergone significant boundary changes. The town of St Neots has been moved into the new constituency of St Neots and Mid Cambs. The newly redrawn Huntingdon constituency retains the towns of St Ives, Kimbolton and Godmanchester, but it has taken in more villages to the north like Somersham and Warboys.

Six candidates are standing in the upcoming election and we hear from them below, listed in alphabetical order by surname.

Chan Abraham is an Independent candidate

Chan Abraham is standing as an Independent. He says he is not a "career politician" and is "standing for the people".

He says his main priority is the cost of living crisis. He wants an audit of all public finances with details of how every penny has been spent.

He says the NHS is "broken" and wants more money spent on doctors and nurses instead of being used on "central services".

Mark Argent is the Liberal Democrat candidate for Huntingdon

Mark Argent is standing for the Liberal Democrats, he previously ran in the Huntingdon constituency in 2019. He says the NHS, especially access to NHS dentists is important and should be funded by changes to capital gains tax.

He says it is important that "some of the prosperity that's happening around Cambridge ends up coming in Huntingdon's direction" especially with regard to suitable house building.

He also says he wishes there was more discussion around Brexit, which he says has caused "huge damage".

Alex Bulat is the Labour candidate

Alex Bulat is currently a Labour county councillor for the Abbey ward in Cambridge.

She says she has decided to buy a house in Huntingdon and wants to represent the area.

She says her key priorities are funding for early years education, affordable housing, access to NHS services and support for small and medium sized businesses.

She says she enjoys living in the area and wants to be an active and proactive constituency MP.

Georgie Hunt is the Green party candidate

Georgie Hunt is standing for the Green party and is currently a Huntingdon town councillor.

She says there needs to be more young people involved in politics which she says is not "working for young people". She says this is "reflective in education and job prospects".

She doesn't believe Labour and the Conservatives appreciate the fact that there is an "inequality crisis" and she wants to see a wealth tax to help bridge that gap.

Locally she wants to promote more active forms of transport like walking and cycling.

Ben Obese-Jecty is the Conservative candidate

Ben Obese-Jecty is standing for the Conservative party. He says he has had a "varied career" including spending nine years as an Army infantry officer, which included service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since leaving the armed forces he has worked in financial services and says he misses the "element of service that working for a corporate organisation doesn't provide".

He says residents of the constituency's rural areas tell him they want better transport connections. He says this is a particular problem for people who live west of the A1. He says the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority's mayoral precept is not providing any additional services for those residents.

He also says there are concerns about Labour's plans to charge VAT on private school fees as all the local secondary state schools are full.

Sarah Smith is the Reform UK candidate

Sarah Smith is standing for Reform UK. She says she has lived in the area for a long time and thinks she could do a good job.

She says Reform is the only party that will "stand up for ordinary people" and help them provide for their families.

She would like to see the personal income tax allowance raised to £20,000 to help people maintain a basic standard of living.

She also supports a policy of giving NHS patients a voucher, so if they need a GP appointment or an operation they can use that towards private care.

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