On Tuesday 6th April 2010 , the worst secret in politics was revealed, when the Prime Minister emerged out of No.10 Downing Street, flanked by his closest allies. Gordon Brown confirmed what we had all predicted, the 2010 General Election would be held on Thursday May 6th. Nobody could have predicted the amazing twists and turns that have followed since that sunny, Tuesday morning. As polling day approaches, it is interesting to lookback at the moments that have made this General Election the closest battle since 1992.
The early sparring was between the two heavyweights of the political spectrum, Gordon Brown, and the Conservative leader David Cameron. As the battle lines were drawn, it was Cameron who held a significant advantage in the early forecast polls. Meanwhile, Brown was failing to deliver on his initial promise of interacting with the people across the UK. An angry father proved this as early as day two in ‘Campaign 2010,’ when he approached Mr. Brown about why his son couldn’t get into his preferred primary school. Gordon walked past him and ignored him, without a care in the world, to which the father response was ‘Joke!’ If David Cameron thought that he had the election under control, an historic event turned politics on its head just one week later.
On Thursday 15th April, at Manchester Downing Street . On the Liberal Democrats Twitter homepage, they posted the following tweet: “Vote for real change, not fake change,” straight after the debate. All of a sudden, Clegg was on a crest of wave and the YouGov, Sky News and ITN polls soon had him surging ahead of Brown and into second place. Former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown was convinced that the tide was turning: “I think last night potentially was a game change." Labour was suffering and soon, they were under attack from natural forces.
The volcanic eruption in Iceland
Realising that the tide was swinging away from him, Gordon Brown urged Nick Clegg to join forces to keep the Tories out of No.10. Clegg’s response was that Brown is “a desperate politician.” In the Sky News Leaders Debate on April 22nd, the results weren’t as clear cut, although many experts believed that Clegg edged the contest again, despite having to endure Adam Boulton’s question on his private expenses, which had made that day’s front page of The Daily Telegraph. Conservative Shadow Chancellor William Hague said on Twitter – “David Cameron has done really well tonight, explaining his positions with great clarity and conviction and taking no nonsense from the rest.” Despite this, the Tories needed another surge and last Wednesday, it came in the shape of Gillian Duffy, a long-time Labour supporter.
Following a seemingly pleasant conversation with Duffy in Rochdale , Gordon Brown forgot his Sky News microphone remained on as he was driven away, and his damming comment left him embarrassed and humiliated. “Everything, she’s just a bigoted woman that said she used to be Labour, I mean, it’s just ridiculous.” An apology swiftly followed, but with egg on his face, followed by another dismal performance in the BBC Election Debate on April 29th, it meant that the possibility of a Labour majority in the polls had been well and truly extinguished.
So, tomorrow, the nation decides who should be in power for the next five years. This General Election campaign has swung back and forth and as the political parties head into the finishing straight, it is still too close to forecast the final outcome. As Nick Clegg has said already – “The cross you put on the ballot paper is small, but what you are doing is big." It is now for us to decide.
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