Salmond: Alba will fight on despite ballot flop

ALEX Salmond has said his Alba Party will keep fighting for independence for at least another four years despite its second electoral disaster.

The former first minister admitted the party had not made the electoral “breakthrough” he claimed was on the cards just last month after not one of its 111 candidates was elected.

He said the next Holyrood election in 2026 was now Alba’s “number one target”, but did not say whether he would still be its leader by then.

He blamed the SNP for holding Alba back by urging people not to use their transfer votes to support any other party.

“Alba is undaunted and will continue to press hard on the urgency of independence,” he said.

Mr Salmond also said Alba would be part of the Yes movement if Nicola Sturgeon held her planned independence referendum next year.

But he added that if his successor failed to hold it, the SNP would “reap the electoral whirlwind”.

Alba failed to win any MSPS on the Holyrood list system, even though it needed just 6 per cent of the vote to do so, ending up on 1.7% last year.

The arithmetic for the local elections was far tougher and Alba hoped strong personal votes might get a handful of candidates re-elected.

But even the party’s best prospect, general secretary Chris Mceleny, was deserted by former supporters in Inverclyde West.

However, he picked up just 126 of the 4,774 first preference votes, the second lowest of seven candidates standing.

Mr Salmond, who did not stand himself as he is pursuing TV work in London, said: “In a number of wards the Alba vote came in at over 5% but the instruction from the SNP leadership not to use preferences to support other independence candidates now condemns most Scottish councils to control by unionists.”