With the SDP making headway across the country we speak with Max Stenner the party’s coordinator in Dorset.
“We have been leading a successful campaign in the town of Corfe Mullen, based around a local bridge which is lacking a footpath”
Can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?
I’m the SDP’s Dorset County Coordinator, and an active member of the Young Social Democrats. In 2022, I was publicly acclaimed for my skills in the field of Public Speaking by my local MP, Simon Hoare. I am also the Foreign Correspondent to a student newspaper based in Indianapolis, the Collegiate Commons. My main interests (other than politics) are music, history and Christian theology.
What does being the County Coordinator involve, and how are the SDP making headway in the county?
As a county coordinator, I am responsible for the party’s campaigns in the local area and for our turnout in local and general elections.
We have been leading a successful campaign in the town of Corfe Mullen, based around a local bridge which is lacking a footpath. Our petition has received over 200 signatures, and we have been out on campaign days where we have been well-received. Locally, we have been featured in two local magazines.
In October I reached out to every Dorset member in order to recruit candidates for this year’s general election, from which I have managed to fill 4 out of the 8 seats in Dorset.
We have also participated in local leafleting in the town in which I live, Blandford Forum, alongside Corfe Mullen.
“the main parties who have been in control of Dorset Council for decades (the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats) have turned a blind eye to the issues affecting the residents they are supposed to represent”
What are the campaigns you and the SDP have been involved in locally?
Last year we ran small campaigns in the towns of Verwood and the aforementioned Blandford, relating to local issues, such as the lack of a local secondary school in Verwood and surgery waiting lists in Blandford.
We have extended our Corfe Mullen campaign to the neighbouring town of Wimborne Minster, and even though it is a predominantly Lib Dem area, we are beginning to make inroads there.
The focus on local issues is down to the fact that the main parties who have been in control of Dorset Council for decades (the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats) have turned a blind eye to the issues affecting the residents they are supposed to represent. There is a gap in the market for a party that cares.
You are the Foreign Correspondent for a student newspaper in Indiana. What sort of articles do they look for on the U.K.?
I became involved with the Collegiate Commons recently, they are a student publication based in Indiana with a communitarian agenda and dedicated to the whole life ethic. They are affiliated with the American Solidarity Party (ASP), an admirable organisation which is pretty much the American equivalent of the SDP.
I write one article per month (one in each issue) for them, on a range of topics across the world. These include; the war in Gaza, the rise of right-wing populism in Europe and the state of the Church of England.
I also write a Substack blog, where I cover political issues affecting the UK. My article about the SDP was shared by the party leader, William Clouston, and my article about the economic philosophy of Distributism was shared by the ASP. You can find my blog at maxstenner.substack.com.
For those eager to help locally, how can they get in touch?
To find out more about the SDP visit our website at https://sdp.org.uk/.
Anyone willing to help out in SDP campaigns can email me at [email protected], or follow and message me on Twitter.
