Bromley & Chislehurst by-election

[Democratic Hawk]

Well, I was kind of expecting Labour to lose its deposit, should it transpire this be the case. Tactical voting to the Lib Dems perhaps but in solid blue Bromley and Chislehurst, it was never going to be enough

A Con 48 / LD 38 split seems reasonable

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

If indeed there is only 600 votes in it between the Conservatives and the Lib Dems, then its not good news for Dave. I was fully expecting a Conservative shoe-in (in fact, I'd have staked my last quid on it); hence, why I thought Con 48 / LD 38 was reasonable

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

Reports that the gap has narrowed further and that the Tories may have lost.

Now that would be an upset!

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

Tories have squeaked it.

Any idea by how many?

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

Tories have squeaked it.

Any idea by how many?

Dave

About 600. The contrast between what Neill and Abbot have said in their speeches and what Davies and Smith said in there's is huge. I'm tired so I'll be blunt; the sort of stuff (and more to the point, the way they said it) said by the latter is the sort of stuff we need to get more people intopolitics. The violent nastyness spewed by both in Bromley is quite the reverse.

I can imagine things at Bromley sounding rather nasty

Dave

[Democratic Hawk]

Poor showing from the Tories. Some comfort can be taken from the low turnout (possibly due to the belief it would be a shoe in) but lessons have to be learned.

I think you guys holding Bromley & Chislehurst is marginally preferable to Labour failing to regain Blaenau Gwent

Of course what would happen come a general if the Labour vote collapsed in safe Tory seats and switched to the Lib Dems on a similar scale? I doubt it will happen though

It's certainly not good for Labour that, considering they were second  (albeit just) to the Conservatives in Bromley & Chislehurst in 2005, that the anti-Tory vote broke overwhelmingly for the Lib Dems. I think I'd have prefered Labour to have been a respectable second, or third even, in this by-election. Still such anti-Tory tactical voting could, arguably, offer some comfort to Labour

Still, given the slump in turnout, it is plausible that many Tories simply didn't bother voting assuming a Conservative hold was going to be a shoe-in

Dave