Vote for Vicky and Andrea!
Andrea Cowhig and Vicky Willson are putting themselves forward as independent candidates for Hollington and Ore in the upcoming Council election. They were encouraged to stand by friends, family and neighbours who want them to speak up on behalf of their communities. And the Hastings People’s Party is 100% behind them too.
Andrea first started campaigning because of damp and mould in her Southern Housing flat, and Vicky was forced to take her case to the national media when her grandson was hospitalised because of mould in hers. Southern Housing now owns thousands of properties that used to be owned by the council, and tenants find it harder and harder to hold them to account or get repairs and problems sorted. That’s why Andrea and Vicky helped set up the Hastings Area Southern Housing Tenants Association (HASHTA) to be a voice for tenants. They want to be councillors to make sure they are listened to.
Andrea and Vicky are both clear that it’s not just on housing issues where things have got to change:
Andrea said, “Our roads are a mess, our health service is crumbling, and the cost of living is going up all the time. The government talks about taking us into wars we want no part of, and building houses none of us can afford. Young people are scared for the future. I want to get elected to shout about what’s going wrong and empower more people to campaign for change. People in Hollington have told me that the roads, the bus service and support for young people is a priority and we are going to work together to campaign for these improvements.”
Vicky is a full-time carer for her severely disabled son and she is passionate about championing the needs of disabled people. She knows the value of community support that she relies on herself, and she is determined to build up community support for everyone.
Vicky is a full-time carer for her severely disabled son and she is passionate about championing the needs of disabled people. She knows the value of community support that she relies on herself, and she is determined to build up community support for everyone.
Vicky meets people every day who are going through the kind of hardships she has faced herself – “I hear from so many people who are struggling to deal with the Council or the DWP or their landlord or their job. I meet people whose lives are in crisis because of domestic violence or mental health or addiction. I know what the real struggles people are facing because I’ve lived it all myself. I want to help other people because that’s what our community is all about.”
Vicky meets people every day who are going through the kind of hardships she has faced herself – “I hear from so many people who are struggling to deal with the Council or the DWP or their landlord or their job. I meet people whose lives are in crisis because of domestic violence or mental health or addiction. I know what the real struggles people are facing because I’ve lived it all myself. I want to help other people because that’s what our community is all about.”
Andrea and Vicky both kicked off their campaigns with public meetings to bring people together and discuss the issues they were most concerned about. Disability access issues were hugely important to people at both meetings and this is something Andrea and Vicky are determined to address – whether or not they get elected.
Both candidates are committed to holding these open meetings on a monthly basis so people in the community can come together with their councillors and campaign for change.
Hastings People’s Party are supporting both candidates and when we have been out knocking on doors it’s clear that many people are fed up with mainstream politicians and there is lots of interest in supporting community campaigners, like Vicky and Andrea, who can really represent their interests.
Andrea and Vicky are standing as Community Independents so they won’t be in a party that is running the council – they will be there to be a voice of opposition if the council is not doing what our town needs. For instance they will be able to campaign and vote against the Local Plan if it does not provide truly affordable housing and protect our environment for future generations – rather than give in to the bullying from national government who want to impose totally unrealistic housing targets on the town, without any investment in new infrastructure or services, and without investment in building houses that local people can actually afford to buy or rent.
Vicky and Andrea were both against the council’s attempt to cancel these elections and will always fight for maximum local democracy.
Why are HPP supporting Andrea and Vicky?
HPP are supporting Vicky and Andrea because these are exactly the kind of community-based representatives we need. We are all sick of failed political parties and being talked down to by politicians. We need people who experience the problems we all face, and who will work closely with the community they represent.
As Andrea says, “I think the only way we can make our voices heard is if we come together as a community. I hope that, if people elect me, it will send a message to the people in power that we are fed up with the way things are.”
Electing two local councillors alone can’t overturn this rigged system, but we need representatives like Vicky and Andrea, who know what it’s like to struggle – both as tenants, and in coping with illness, disability or caring responsibilities – who can help organise our communities to speak up for ourselves.
Politics is in a bad state
It’s tragic that nearly all the other parties in Hastings and St Leonards voted to try to cancel these elections from happening at all, though they knew these were the last elections before the government imposes the council ‘re-organisation’ that nobody voted for either.
In 2024, only 28.5% of people in Hollington voted. That implies that 71.5% of the electorate felt that none of the political parties represented them. In Ore just over one thousand people voted, a little over 30%. That’s shocking. That is who Andrea and Vicky want to represent – those who feel they have nobody to represent them.
Polling shows that only around 9 to 14% of the British public trust politicians to tell the truth (Ipsos, ‘Veracity Index’) and two-thirds think that politicians are ‘merely out for themselves’ (IPPR/YouGov 2026). Hastings People’s Party believes that politicians should be part of the communities they represent, who listen and respond to the electorate. We need to demand that our politicians are honest and work in our interest, not their own.
The politics we don’t need
The other party that is hoping to tap into widespread anger with the Labour government and the other establishment parties is Reform. They will use these local elections to try to build up popular support for a Farage government, which will be modelled on what Trump is doing in America – ruthlessly attacking public spending on essential services while building up an almost paramilitary force of ICE agents who harass and imprison and even murder migrant workers – in a country that is basically built on immigration! When Trump is not tearing America apart, he is setting fire to the Middle East – another agenda Farage and Reform were keen to follow, until they realised how unpopular it would be to send British troops into another illegal American/Israeli war.
Reform has a very small number of actively committed supporters, but our media constantly amplifies their messages, making them sound like they represent the majority view. The main reason they are winning elections is because so few people vote at all.
To beat Reform we need a viable alternative that people think is worth coming out to vote for. Without the money and media backing of parties like Reform, that will take lots of work, knocking on doors and on social media, to have proper conversations with people to let them know what Vicky and Andrea stand for.
If you want to help with leafleting, social media, admin or anything else, or if you want to donate to their campaigns, please contact andreacowhig4hollington@yahoo.com and vickywilson4ore@gmail.com.
What about the rest of Hastings?
In other areas of Hastings and for the county council, HPP suggest voting for the Hastings Independents Group (standing in 4 borough council wards), or for Green Party candidates. The Conservatives record in government speaks for itself, and Labour is continuing many or most of the same policies so we will obviously not be supporting them!
Don’t forget your photo ID!
If you don’t have a photo ID or will find it hard to get to a polling station on election day, you can register for a postal vote on the link below (before 20th April). You need to know your national insurance number and need to take a photo of your signature and upload it – it takes about 5 min to fill out. HPP can help if you need support to complete this.