Ani Townsend
Ani Townsend | |
|---|---|
| File:Cllr Ani Stafford-Townsend.jpg Townsend in 2021 | |
| Bristol City Councillor for Central ward | |
| Assumed office 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 1980 (age 46) |
| Political party | Green Party of England and Wales |
| Education | Wimbledon School of Art[1] |
Ani Townsend (born March 1980)[2] is a Green Party of England and Wales councillor, milliner and university lecturer. Townsend was first elected in 2015 for the ward of Cabot in Bristol, which was later renamed to "Central ward".[3]
Early life
Townsend grew up in Filton, England.[4] Speaking of their early life, Townsend said they grew up "in poverty in a working class family in the 80s".[5]
Politics
Townsend was originally elected in 2015 for the ward of Cabot in Bristol.[6] They have led the Green group at Bristol's City Hall and have been a committee chair.[3] The Green Party is the joint largest political group on Bristol City Council, where Townsend holds the shadow cabinet position of Communities, Culture, Equalities and Public Health.[7]
In 2021, Townsend supported a campaign for a dedicated play park for disabled adults in Bristol.[8]
In June 2022, Townsend was one of four members of the Green Party Women committee who resigned over the Green Party’s policies on transgender rights, having experienced "numerous issues with process, procedures, and communication" while attempting to make the party more inclusive for transgender people.[9]
In January 2024, Townsend threatened to take the Labour group at Bristol City Council to court for defamation over accusations of racial and religious abuse during a November 2024 planning meeting, a claim which the Bristol Post reported was “disputed by other councillors and members of the public who had attended the meeting.”[10][11]
Townsend stood in the constituency of Bristol East in the 2024 UK general election, receiving 31% of the vote and coming in second place to Labour.[12][13][14] Their result was the best second-place finish of any Green Party candidate in England in the 2024 general election.[5]
Townsend is standing in the 2025 Green Party of England and Wales deputy leadership election.[3][5][15][16]
Electoral performance
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | Ani Stafford-Townsend | 2,916 | 38.47 | +18.21 | |
| Labour | Kye Dudd | 1,692 | 22.32 | –3.47 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Alexander William Woodman | 1,527 | 20.15 | –20.46 | |
| Conservative | Will Luangrath | 1,352 | 17.84 | +4.49 | |
| TUSC | Chris Farrell | 93 | 1.23 | N/A | |
| Majority | 1,224 | 16.15 | +1.33 | ||
| Green gain from Liberal Democrat | Swing | +10.84 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Kye Dudd | 1,051 | 40.38 | ||
| Labour | Paul Smith | 849 | 32.62 | ||
| Green | Ani Stafford-Townsend | 842 | 32.35 | ||
| Green | Rob Telford | 635 | 24.39 | ||
| Liberal Democrat | Pauline Allen | 364 | 13.98 | ||
| Conservative | Suzi Best | 360 | 13.83 | ||
| Liberal Democrat | Sylvia Doubell | 328 | 12.60 | ||
| Conservative | Ann Pulteney | 318 | 12.22 | ||
| Turnout | 2,603 | 35.50 | |||
| Labour win (new seat) | |||||
| Labour win (new seat) | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | Ani Stafford-Townsend | 1,316 | 40.13 | +7.78 | |
| Labour | Farah Hussain | 1,078 | 32.88 | -7.45 | |
| Labour | Kye Daniel Dudd | 1,064 | 32.45 | -0.17 | |
| Green | Simon Ingham Stafford-Townsend | 985 | 30.04 | +5.65 | |
| Conservative | Richard Leslie Clifton | 413 | 12.60 | -1.23 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Jen Smith | 373 | 11.38 | -2.60 | |
| Conservative | David John Kibble | 360 | 10.98 | -1.24 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Zac Barker | 300 | 9.15 | -3.45 | |
| Turnout | 3,279 | 29.52 | -5.98 | ||
| Green gain from Labour | |||||
| Labour hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green | Ani Stafford-Townsend* | 1,407 | 51.33 | +11.20 | |
| Green | Sibusiso Tshabalala | 1,242 | 45.31 | +15.27 | |
| Labour | Sarah Chaffer-Swingler | 1,093 | 39.88 | +7.00 | |
| Labour | Matt Redmore | 944 | 34.44 | +1.99 | |
| Conservative | Julian Elacott | 157 | 5.73 | -6.87 | |
| Conservative | Tony Lee | 152 | 5.55 | -5.43 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Adam Harvey | 117 | 4.27 | -7.11 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Henry Windle | 85 | 3.10 | -6.05 | |
| TUSC | Nick Clare | 78 | 2.85 | +2.85 | |
| Turnout | 2,741 | 30.60 | +1.08 | ||
| Green gain from Labour | |||||
| Green hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Kerry McCarthy | 20,748 | 45.0 | -13.4 | |
| Green | Ani Stafford-Townsend | 14,142 | 30.7 | +22.3 | |
| Conservative | Dan Conaghan | 6,435 | 14.0 | -9.3 | |
| Liberal Democrat | Tony Sutcliffe | 2,713 | 5.9 | -1.0 | |
| Independent | Farooq Siddique | 1,259 | 2.7 | N/A | |
| SDP | Clare Dunnage | 555 | 1.2 | N/A | |
| Independent | Wael Arafat | 257 | 0.6 | N/A | |
| Majority | 6,606 | 14.3 | −20.8 | ||
| Turnout | 46,109 | 60.7 | -12.1 | ||
| Registered electors | 75,917 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | −17.8 | |||
Activism and other work
Townsend has said they have been an environmental activist since the age of five.[15]
Townsend is a university lecturer, milliner for stage and screen productions, costume designer and a project manager.[6] Townsend has worked on productions including Doctor Who and Poldark.[22]
Townsend is a co-chair of the Bristol One City Culture Board.[23]
Townsend has volunteered with charity organisations including night shelters, domestic violence organisations and mental health organisations and advocates for marginalised demographics.[6]
Townsend is a member of several unions and has been a union representative.[6]
Recognition
Townsend was placed on the Bristol Post's Pink List 2023, recognising them as one of Bristol's most influential LGBTQ+ people.[24]
Personal life
Townsend identifies as queer, disabled and working class.[6]
References
- ↑ "Ani Townsend Millinery & Milliners' Guild". Bristol Creatives. 28 September 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ "Ani STAFFORD-TOWNSEND". Gov.uk. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Booth, Martin (9 June 2025). "Ani Townsend runs for Green Party deputy leader". Bristol24/7. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ Raval, Priyanka (3 July 2024). "A Labour victory in Bristol East is odds-on, but will a Green surge cut the party's majority?". The Bristol Cable. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Deputy Leader". Green Party of England and Wales. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 "Ani Townsend". Bristol Green Party. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ Cameron, Amanda (9 July 2021). "Bristol Greens announce shadow cabinet to challenge ruling Labour group". Bristol Live. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
- ↑ Postans, Adam (2021-11-12). "Campaign for play park for disabled adults takes step closer". Bristol Live. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ Jarvis, Chris (2022-06-15). "One third of Green Party Women committee resigns". Bright Green. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ Cork, Tristan (2024-01-02). "Councillor to sue Bristol Labour for defamation after meeting boycott". Bristol Live. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ Seabrook, Alex (2023-12-14). "Labour hits back at claims religious abuse allegations 'made up'". Bristol Live. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ Cork, Tristan (2024-07-05). "Green surge in Bristol makes them main challenger to Labour now". Bristol Live. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ Jarvis, Chris (11 June 2025). "Ani Townsend announces Green Party deputy leadership bid". Bright Green. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
- ↑ "Bristol East - General election results 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 2025-08-09.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Roig, Estel (9 June 2025). "Councillor running to become Green Party deputy leader". Bristol Live. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ Turn Left (2025-07-24). Ani Townsend Makes Their PITCH | Green Party Deputy Candidate. Retrieved 2025-08-09 – via YouTube.
- ↑ "Cabot Ward". Bristol City Council. Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2015. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ "Bristol City Council elections 2021: candidate list in full released". Bristol Live. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
- ↑ "Central Ward". Bristol City Council. 2021-05-09. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
- ↑ "Central Ward". Bristol City Council. 2021-05-09. Archived from the original on 7 May 2024. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
- ↑ "Statement of Persons Nominated and Notice of Poll". Bristol City Council. 7 June 2024. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
- ↑ Perera, Milan (7 June 2024). "Ani Stafford-Townsend is new Green Party candidate in Bristol East". Bristol24/7. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
- ↑ Skirkowski, Joe (22 July 2025). "Council says selling TV studios 'not possible'". BBC News. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
- ↑ Waterworth, Tanya (29 June 2023). "The Pink List 2023: Here are some of Bristol's most influential LGBTQ+ people". Bristol Post. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
This article "Ani Townsend" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Ani Townsend. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
