Threat made to burn down house of Faversham and Mid Kent election candidate's campaign manager
17:16, 26 November 2019
updated: 18:30, 26 November 2019
A threat to burn down the house of an election candidate's campaign manager has been reported to the police.
Hannah Perkin, who is standing for the Liberal Democrats in Faversham and Mid Kent next month, revealed on social media she had suffered personal threats to her safety and that of her friends and family while on the campaign trail.
In a message that has since been retweeted more than 800 times, she wrote: "I am standing up for what I believe in. When did we lose the ability to do that? Honestly heartbroken."
She has since received backing from a number of other candidates around the county, including the Green Party's Hannah Temple and Helen Whately of the Conservatives, both of whom will come up against Mrs Perkin in the same constituency on December 12, and Vince Maple and Rosie Duffield, who are standing for Labour in Chatham and Aylesford and Canterbury respectively.
Mrs Perkin then followed it up with another tweet, which read: "Just to say a massive thank you to everyone from across the political spectrum for your kind support.
"The party and the police have been incredible and I'll continue to go out and campaign for what I believe in."
The emergency services have since visited the home of Mrs Perkin, who also serves on Swale Borough Council, in response to the incident.
The 35-year-old mum-of-two told KentOnline: "It's been quite concerning for me and my children, but the police have been amazing and have dealt with it efficiently.
"Initially I was quite worried about it but it's now a case of carrying on and trying to put out a positive message. I'm not going to let it affect me."
Police confirmed they'd received a report of a malicious communication sent to a person in the Faversham area.
Ch Insp Alan Rogers, district commander for Swale, said: "Officers have provided the recipient with personal safety advice and made an appointment to visit them.
"The contents will be assessed to determine if any criminal offences have been committed and if the sender of the communication can be identified."
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