Independent 'shut out' by media

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/uk_politics/7375781.stm

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London's only independent mayoral candidate, Winston McKenzie, has hit out at the lack of media coverage for candidates other than "Boris and Ken".

Mr McKenzie, who says he has spent £36,000 on his campaign, has found it hard to get his message across, despite touring London in his "battle bus".

"There are ten candidates running and all the general public know about are two," he told the BBC.

"Candidates like myself are left out of the equation."

Mr McKenzie, who has a team of four working in his office and a further 15 out distributing leaflets, faced an uphill struggle just to collect the 330 signatures, 10 from each borough, needed to get on the ballot paper.

'Overhaul' politics

Without party funding behind him, he said he could not drum up the £10,000 needed to secure an advertisement in the elections booklet that has gone to all voters in London.

He said national media coverage of the smaller party candidates had been "disgraceful" - but he had been across London, speaking in churches, at schools and touring in his "55ft dodge ram" battle bus.

He said his slogan "save our children" had been going down well with voters, who saw dealing with youth crime, guns and gangs as a priority - Mr McKenzie wants schools to open after hours to run more youth facilities.

He said, regardless of how he does, he wants to "overhaul" politics within the next 18 months - by encouraging more people to vote, particularly black people in London: "I will bring them out to vote in their droves," he said.