‘I understand why she moved’: Dover voters on Natalie Elphicke switching parties

Mae Montenegro said she would vote for Elphicke regardless of her party affiliation. Photograph: Martin Godwin/The Guardian

Party politics may be tribal for many, but in Dover most people feel their MP has won their loyalty through her work in the community, regardless of whether she is Tory or Labour.

The MP for Dover and Deal, Natalie Elphicke, became the second Tory MP to switch parties in two weeks, in protest at the “incompetence and division” of Rishi Sunak’s government as she crossed the floor of the House of Commons before prime minister’s questions on Wednesday.