Why not switch mayoral elections to FPTP? On May 3rd next year more than one in eight of UK adults will be able to vote in what is the biggest election before the general election. At stake is a position that arguably has more political power than anyone apart from the prime minister. With Ken bidding to return to his old job and Boris trying to hang on in less than clement conditions for the blues this will be a…
Will the old bruiser win his job back We’ve not looked at it for some time but one of the key battles next year will be for the Mayor of London. Every single elector throughout the capital can vote in what is a massive election. Boris Johnson won the crown in 2008 at a time when the popularity of the Tories was at a height and Labour was down in the doldrums. Nearly 2,5m people voted, a turnout of 45%,…
UPDATED Could Labour MP,Tom Harris, himself be in trouble? The above spoof ad has been published by Labour blogger Tom Harris MP under the heading “I do hope the NEC will approve…” to illustrate what the party’s London mayoral candidate, Ken Livingstone, did during the recent campaign for the mayoralty of Tower Hamlets. It will be recalled that the party replaced the controversial Muslim leader, Lutfur Rahman, as the official Labour candidate two months before polling but this did not…
Contender Overall % Inner London Outer London Boris Johnson 45 33 52 Ken Livingstone 27 32 24 Oona King 9 11 7 None 19 24 27 How big a task is this for Labour? With voting due to close on Wednesday in Labour’s election to choose a London mayoral candidate there’s what I think is the very first poll on the 2012 election by ComRes for the London Evening Standard. The numbers show the importance of incumbency and even if…
Can Ken get his old job back? The big news this morning in the 2012 London Mayoral race is that Boris Johnson has confirmed he will be seeking re-election for a second term. In an LBC interview he said he wanted to stay on beyond May 2012 because he had “more to do” improving the capital and overseeing the Olympics – “It is my intention and indeed I have written to seek the nomination to serve as Mayor for another…