First of all, thanks for taking the time to come and read my bio and visit my website!
I’m Math Campbell-Sturgess. I’m a 38 year old freelance Graphic Designer. I’ve lived in Argyll & Bute since 2016 having moved here from Greenock before our daughter was born in order that she could grow up here.
I was born in England and was a reservist in the Royal Engineers before moving to Scotland when I met my fiancée, who was herself brought up in this area before she had to move to Greenock for work.
I joined the SNP in 2008 and I was a Councillor for a full five years in Greenock from 2012 to 2017 where I had a good reputation for working together across parties to get the job done.
I’m also the founder of English Scots for YES. In the 2014 referendum I travelled across Scotland meeting thousands of people, doing dozens of television interviews, representing the group internationally in both print and tv/radio – so I have the background and experience to represent Dumbarton at the national level.
I joined the SNP in 2008 and I was a Councillor for a full five years in Greenock from 2012 to 2017 where I had a good reputation for working together across parties to get the job done.
I’m also the founder of English Scots for YES. In the 2014 referendum I travelled across Scotland meeting thousands of people, doing dozens of television interviews, representing the group internationally in both print and tv/radio – so I have the background and experience to represent Dumbarton at the national level.
I’ve also had plenty of experience of moving issues forwards. I co-wrote the motions on both ending Sex For Rent – a hideous, vile practice that has claimed many victims, which I am pleased to say the SNP conference voted unanimously to outlaw after my motion – and also motions like the Coffee Cup Levy – which has been enacted into law to reduce the chronic littering. A small step you may think, but that change alone will reduce Scotland’s carbon footprint my millions of kilograms! Not to mention reduce the amount of coffee cups we see littered everywhere! It is this experience and history of working with party colleagues, opposition parties and community groups that I feel make me an ideal candidate in an election where we absolutely need our strongest people at the front.
I want to be a regional MSP to be a voice for the voiceless, and stand up for them.
I want strong regional SNP MSP’s for the Highlands and Islands to address problems that have been ignored or left lying for too long; to speak up for the voiceless. To work to end historic injustices and inequalities and ensure that if we are truly to “Build Back Better” as we recover from Covid-19, that it is better for everyone.
I want to help our high-streets recover from the pandemic, and our local businesses grow & prosper. I want to advocate for local authorities to be given the power – nae, duty to get shop units that have lain empty for too long filled with new businesses. And the power to tax the property developers – most of whom are not based in the area or even in Scotland – if they refuse to reduce rents and do something to fill those empty units that blight our towns and villages like a pox on the community.
I want to use my background as not only an English Scot but as a leader within the SNP and wider YES movement, to speak to the many English Scots across the Highlands and Islands. To let them know that independence is for ALL Scots – no matter where we were born – because it’s about where we are going together, as a country.
And, most of all, like the majority of Scots, I want an independent Scotland. And that will happen soon. Which is why it is vital we return regional SNP MSPs – in an election that will be the toughest in Scotland, against a candidate who is both experienced and wily – not to mention her Party’s deputy leader. With the ongoing restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s anyone’s guess what, if any, traditional campaigning we will be able to do in the run up to May 2021. So it is VITAL that we have candidates who not only have the experience of working with traditional campaigns – as I have since I ran my first campaign as a Campaign Manager in 2010 – but also the digital elements which this election may very well be fought upon.
We cannot afford to pick a candidate who doesn’t know their Instagrams from their Twitters!
We need candidates who is both comfortable and capable using social media, internet campaigning and digital tools to reach out to undecided voters. Since I literally wrote a guide for SNP candidates way back in 2011 on how to campaign using social-media, I clearly have these skills – as this website and all of the videos and content you see on it – which was all developed solely by me (although my partner did hold my cue cards for me in some of my videos!).
I know you may be thinking “that social-media stuff isn’t that important!” but in this election, it may well be the difference between a narrow loss and a triumphant victory for the party. We need someone who can fluently utilise our resources for things like demographic ad-targeting, keyword SEO management and more to make sure that the undecided voters in the region that we may not be able to knock the door of as in elections past will still see our message, still get a chance to be convinced by our arguments and still make the difference to elect as many regional MSPs for the Highlands and Islands as possible. If we are to win independence, we NEED that majority in Parliament – and in 2011 we got a majority on the backs of the regional MSP seats we won, some of them by a bare handful of votes. This is why #bothvotesSNP is VITAL.
So, when the ballots open, please, consider giving me, Math Campbell-Sturgess, your #1 vote – and if you’ve already decided on another candidate, please consider giving me your secondary vote. And together, we can WIN the Highlands and Islands and then WIN our independence.
Thank you for reading!
