Medway Council election candidate Gloria Thienel still on ballot as Conservative despite suspension by Tories
Published: 12:00, 01 May 2019
Updated: 12:23, 01 May 2019
An election candidate will still appear on ballot papers as a Conservative candidate despite being suspended because it was too late to remove her.
Gloria Thienel was hoping to win in Peninsula ward for the Tories in the Medway Council elections.
However, she has now been suspended from the Conservative Party following allegations concerning offensive posts on social media about Muslims.
Screenshots of Twitter posts obtained by politics blog Political Medway show Gloria Thienel, who lives in Allhallows, shared Tweets and Facebook posts about Muslims and inmigration in London.
Ms Thienel used to be a councillor in Tower Hamlets, where she is from.
In one Tweet of her own, she said of London Mayor Sadiq Khan: "How sad to see it looks like my home town will appointment (sic) a Muslim Mayor. Look what one did in Tower Hamlets my birth place. #Sad."
In another, she praised a debate that had been taking place on daytime show Loose Women, saying "Look at Tower Hamlets how the Muslims have taken over. Time to stand up."
Her Twitter feed is protected, meaning only people she allows access to it can view the content, and her Facebook is also under private settings.
The Messenger understands Ms Thienel's name will be listed on tomorrow's ballot for people voting in Peninsula ward, and that she will appear as a Conservative candidate.
The electoral commission's official local election timetable for 2019, states that the day for withdrawal of nominations is 19 working days before the election, which is also the deadline for the delivery of nomination papers.
Ms Thienel refused to comment on her suspension.
Cllr Gary Etheridge, head of Rochester and Strood Conservative Association, said he was unable to comment due to GDPR rules.
Leader of Medway Council Cllr Alan Jarrett was also contacted for comment, and said he was also unable to.
The full list of candidates for Peninsula ward are: Mohammad Ahmad (Green), Elizabeth Castell (Labour), Phil Filmer (Conservatives), Roy Freshwater (Ukip), Clive Gregory (Green), Sonia Hyner (Green), Joe Murray (Labour), Harold Ogunfemi (Conservatives), Mick Pendergast (Independent), Ron Sands (Independent), Chris Spalding (Independent), Gloria Thienel (Conservatives), Julie Wallace (Independent), Simon Williams (Labour).
For more news on the 2019 local elections, click here.
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Katie May Nelson, local democracy reporter