There’s just one week to go (thank goodness). All eyes are on the party leaders and tonight’s debate.
Today’s front page story in the Guardian by Julian Glover headlined “Lib Dems set for most MPs since 1923 – poll” reports on the newspaper’s polling carried out on Tuesday this week. It shows big swings from Labour to the Liberal Democrats in key marginals. The poll also shows a swing from Conservatives to the Liberal Democrats in the seats where polling was carried out.
“On yesterday’s results the Lib Dems could hope to win some seats, such as St Albans, from third place,” the Guardian writes. St Albans was one of only six constituencies from across Britain mentioned by name in the article.
This echoes the story carried by last Saturday’s Daily Mirror headlined “Tories in Double Trouble”. In that story, Kevin Maguire writes: “Cam[eron] could also lose seats such as Croydon Central (infighting) and St Albans (expenses).” In this article St Albans was one of only four seats highlighted.
We all know something is happening in St Albans. These articles by political experts simply reinforce what we are seeing on the ground. We are easily winning the poster war, the response on the doorstep is very warm, and many Labour, Conservative and Green voters have switched to the Liberal Democrats.
And my brother-in-law has just phoned to tell me that Ladbrokes now have us at evens.
They were, of course, all wrong.
Sadly that turned out to be the case. But the LibDem increase in share of vote was the highest in the East of England, 230 sitting MPs were elected with fewer votes than the Liberal Democrats polled in St Albans, and Anne Main has the lowest majority of any re-elected MP.