East Ayrshire Council election hopeful in storm over First Minister 'treasonous b***h' retweet

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A council election hopeful has apologised after retweeting a message which called First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a “treasonous b***h.” Critics say John Bell, the former SNP councillor for the Doon Valley ward, is ‘unfit for office’ and supports “misogynistic behaviour” after retweeting a troll.

Mr Bell, 65, resigned his membership of the SNP in March and is running as an independent.He denied being a misogynist and hit back at SNP ‘dirty tricks’, claiming the party is ‘worried’ over how well his election campaign is going.The furore is over a retweet Mr Bell made in December – while still an SNP member and councillor.He retweeted a message from a troll of the First Minister which read: “This treasonous b!tch has got to go – yes you @NicolaSturgeon, pack your bags and walk.”The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now.Get all the local news in your area – plus features, football news and the latest on the coronavirus crisis – at your fingertips 24/7.The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories while you can customise your page with the sections that matter to you.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now on iOS and Android.Critics are comparing Mr Bell’s behaviour to the sexism row that’s erupted at Westminster.One anonymous source said: “Following on from the backlash to the Mail on Sunday’s atrocious misogynistic attack on Labour deputy leader, Angela Rayner, I wondered if anyone would like to challenge John Bell on his endorsement (retweet) of an anonymous troll’s misogynistic language towards the First Minister from December last year?”Another anonymous source said: “With behaviour like this, Mr Bell is unfit for office, as this retweet clearly shows.”Mr Bell said: "The fact