Blur drummer Dave Rowntree named as Labour candidate
The musician Dave Rowntree, best known as the drummer for the British rock band Blur, has been named as a Labour candidate to stand at the forthcoming general election.
Due to stand for the Mid Sussex seat, which the Conservative MP Mims Davies currently holds, Rowntree will be hoping to turn the constituency red for the very first time. The next general election is due to take place no later than January 28th, 2025, with some political commentators believing it could occur in November, while others have stated that it could be held as soon as May 2024.
“I’m delighted to have the opportunity to become Labour’s first Mid Sussex MP,” Rowntree said in a statement, “Residents have their best chance in a generation to make their vote count and return a Labour MP to Parliament.”
Coinciding with his statement, the Mid Sussex Labour constituency declared: “Our constituency chair, Pam Haigh, is delighted to announce Dave Rowntree as our parliamentary candidate for General Election 24. Dave is a long-term party member who has served in many party roles, including PPC and County Council.”
This isn’t the first time Rowntree will have been a part of the British political system either, with the musician having been elected as county councillor for the University ward in Norwich in 2017 before stepping down shortly before the 2021 election.
“The Tories have run out of ideas, and the Lib Dems have run out of steam,” Rowntree added in his public statement regarding his political campaign, “I’m running for Parliament to provide the energy and vision the area so desperately needs.”
A key fixture of the British rock band, Rowntree has been a part of Blur ever since they were founded in 1988, alongside Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon and Alex James. In July last year, Rowntree was reunited with the band for their Wembley Stadium comeback.
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