AN aide to Joanna Cherry is to seek to be the SNP’s Holyrood candidate for Edinburgh Southern.
Catriona MacDonald, who works for the Edinburgh South West MP in her office in the capital, is planning to throw her hat into the ring to be selected for the seat when the nomination process opens in April.
MacDonald was the SNP’s candidate for the Edinburgh South constituency in the December General Election, standing against sitting MP Ian Murray.
Murray won with a hefty majority but MacDonald achieved a 3% swing towards the SNP and won plaudits for her campaign in the constituency – regarded as a prime SNP target – which was visited by Nicola Sturgeon.
READ MORE: Warning that Angus Robertson v Joanna Cherry may be ‘acrimonious’
Should she win the internal SNP selection contest, MacDonald would be up against Labour’s Daniel Johnson. The Labour backbencher won the seat in 2016 with a 1123 majority.
Writing on a crowdfunder appeal for her General Election campaign, MacDonald said: “I am proud to have been selected as your SNP candidate for Edinburgh South – and I am ready to win this seat for us.
“I believe in a better future for Scotland – a future where we look after the well-being of our people, tackle the climate crisis and play a leading role in the European Union, and on the world stage as an independent country.
“Edinburgh South has been a Labour stronghold for too long. It’s time things changed around here, don’t you think?
“I want to take our positive vision for Scotland’s future to voters in Edinburgh South – but to do that, I need your help.”
READ MORE: Kevin McKenna: Robertson vs Cherry is a failure of SNP leadership
She is currently Cherry’s community officer, working closely with constituents in Edinburgh South West to deal with issues they want to raise.
Outside her paid role, MacDonald is the secretary of the SNP’s Morningside branch.
She welcomed Cherry’s decision to stand as a prospective SNP candidate for Edinburgh Central.
Responding to the SNP MP’s announcement, she wrote on Twitter: “We need @theSNP MSPs at Holyrood with the strategy to deliver independence and the vision to build a better future for Scotland.”
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