Former soldier who "doesn't do politically correct" joins Doncaster mayoral race

David Bettney, who ran to become mayor of South Yorkshire in the 2024 election, has been announced as the candidate for the Social Democratic Party.

He served in the Army for 22 years, completing tours in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan, and rising to the rank of Regimental Sergeant Major.

Since leaving the Army, David has built and run several construction, logistics and storage businesses, and became manager of a group of five companies employing over 350 people.

Born and raised in South Yorkshire, at the previous election, he said his campaign priorities were to champion British and Yorkshire industry, to provide better opportunities for young people, to work rapidly to end homelessness, and to crack down on crime and antisocial behaviour.

Last summer he said: “We have a chance to start taking our country back – one county at a time.”

He said that tackling homelessness was his top priority and was keen to promote British values in schools and said people need to be “Yorkshire” before identifying as anything else.

In his previous election campaign he said: “Politically in this country, we are lions led by donkeys” and backed a campaign to deport “all illegal immigrants” and to wage war on drug and grooming gangs.

He told voters: I don't do politically correct. I will always do what is morally right.”

At the 2024 South Yorkshire mayoral election, he picked up 20,835 after Reform chose not to stand against him.

He also stood against Ed Miliband in the Doncaster North consituency at last summer’s General Election, finishing third after Reform again chose not to stand against him.

The current form of the SDP was established in 1990 and traces its origin to the Social Democratic Party, which was formed in 1981 by a group of dissident Labour Party MPs and former Cabinet members Roy Jenkins, David Owen, Bill Rodgers and Shirley Williams.

The original SDP merged with the Liberal Party in 1988 to form the Liberal Democrats, but Owen, two other MPs and a minority of party activists formed a breakaway group also called the Social Democratic Party immediately afterwards.

Ideologically, the party blends social democratic economic policies with cultural conservatism.

The party stood candidates in 122 constituencies in the 2024 United Kingdom general election, where it had an electoral pact with Reform UK in some constituencies, campaigning on a manifesto titled 'homecoming' which pledged to protect "family, neighbourhood and nation.”