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Leeds Live
Leeds Live
National
Kristian Johnson

Tory candidate's passionate defence of Leeds Labour MP who suffered vile online abuse

Political differences were put to one side this Christmas as a Conservative candidate from Leeds stood up for the Labour MP he ran against in the 2019 General Election.

Mark Dormer was the prospective parliamentary candidate for the Tories in Leeds West and spent weeks campaigning in Kirkstall, Bramley and Armley.

However, he was unable to oust Labour's Rachel Reeves, who held onto her seat with a majority of almost 11,000.

A Twitter spat gathered pace soon after the election, with two accounts accusing Ms Reeves of being "the real problem" and saying that she does "not have the interests of their constituents at heart".

Mr Dormer was quick to rubbish the claims though and issued a staunch defence of his former opponent.

He said: "I was the Conservatives candidate for Leeds West, I spent five weeks knocking on doors and was repeated [sic] told how much Rachel Reeves did for the area.

Responding to the accounts that dished out the criticism, he said: "Your views are inaccurate and ignorant and your abuse and vile anti-semitism has no place in politics or society as a whole."

'More of this in politics in 2020 would be a good thing!'

His kind words have been retweeted thousands of times since and Ms Reeves sent a message of thanks to Mr Dormer a short time later.

"Got to say, this means a lot," she said. "When the Tory candidate who challenges you for your seat recognises the work you do locally.

"Thank you @MarkCDormer. More of this in politics in 2020 would be a good thing! #moreincommon #leedswest."

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