Graeme McKenzie, a Labour election candidate standing in Angus, has apologised after posting a picture of himself campaigning in the wrong constituency.
Mr McKenzie, who is standing for the party in Angus South, was accused of being responsible for an election “clanger” after sharing an image of himself out leafleting in Forfar, which lies in the neighbouring Angus North and Mearns constituency.
In a now-deleted post published on his Graeme McKenzie for Angus South social media account on Monday, Mr McKenzie wrote: “Great leaflet run in Forfar. It’s time for a fresh voice here in Angus South.
“The voice of the communities here have been left behind for years.”
Forfar has been part of the Angus North and Mearns constituency since the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, when Angus was split to create two new seats, and Cindy Douglas – who lives in Stonehaven – has been chosen to represent Labour there.
Political rivals suggested Mr McKenzie, who initially put himself forward for the Dundee City East seat, had been “parachuted” into Angus South and questioned how voters could support “a candidate that doesn’t even leaflet in the right town”.
The mistake may also be in breach of guidelines set out by the Electoral Commission on candidates sharing materials in an area other than their own constituency during the election.
It is understood leaflets were distributed to around 50 households in the Northampton Road area by Mr McKenzie on Monday.
Scottish Conservative councillor Derek Wann, who sits on Angus Council, said it was “another embarrassing clanger for Scottish Labour”.
“The candidate has taken the wrong turn off the A90 and there will be some very confused residents in the south of Forfar,” he said.
“How can people in Angus South trust a party on local issues if they don’t even know where the constituency is?
“This just underlines the fact that only the Scottish Conservatives have what it takes to challenge the SNP.”
Taking a stand
Mr McKenzie was part of a political storm in his home city of Dundee in 2019, after he urged local party members to support calls for their general election candidate, Jim Malone, to be suspended over remarks that were alleged to be anti-Semitic.
Dundee Labour bosses accused Mr McKenzie of speaking “outwith the terms of our constitution” after he took a stand following calls for Mr Malone to be dropped over allegedly anti-Semitic and racist online posts by individuals close to his campaign.
Mr McKenzie was threatened with disciplinary action by over his involvement and was selected as a candidate for Angus South after being turned down by his local branch.
He said: “I should not have crossed the constituency boundary and I apologise unreservedly for my breach of the rules.”
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