Ready for a double by-election day?
Written by Stephen Tall on 26th June 2007 – 8:42 amRumours abound (hat-tips: Dizzy and Guido) that Tony Blair will announce his resignation as an MP this week, triggering a by-election in Sedgefield to be held on the same day as the by-election in Ealing Southall.
Labour’s thinking goes that such a double-hander will dilute the Lib Dems’ by-election efforts - and as Labour are unlikely to lose both seats they could at the very least claim a “score draw”. (This was the phrase used by then Labour party chair, John Reid, after the Lib Dems’ sensationally snatched victory in Leicester South, but just missed out in Birmingham Hodge Hill. Both, of course, had been traditionally rock-solid Labour seats.)
So put a circle round Thursday, 26th July.
Posted in Campaigning, Ealing Southall, News
26th June 2007 at 9:52 am
Only double? What about Hull and Streatham? Neither make sense to risk by themselves. But four at once does.
26th June 2007 at 10:21 am
“What about Hull and Streatham?”
Streatham MP has announced he’ll retire at next GE, but I’ve not heard suggestions he can resign early (infact announcing his intentions to retire, he mentioned carrying over his duties for “the next couple of years”).
I don’t think he has planned to die either.
26th June 2007 at 11:29 am
I can’t see too many Lib Dems from the N/East trailing down to Ealing, therefore we will not be as stretched as they might think!
26th June 2007 at 12:08 pm
Pessimist, I can’t see John Prescott resigning. What would he become? Special envoy for the National Syntax Association?
26th June 2007 at 1:33 pm
This article- http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article2710694.ece speculates that John Prescott wants to stand down.
26th June 2007 at 5:13 pm
Please, please please can we all be banned from Sedgefield and forced into London. As someone who spent time in Blaenau Gwent last year when I could have dedicated just as much time to Bromley, I was incredibly frustrated when I saw the final results. I am sure I wasn’t alone. We have to be careful and not dilute ourselves out of a great opportunity.
26th June 2007 at 5:16 pm
we showed at Hodge Hill and Leicester South that we could run multiple credible campaigns concurrently. No, we don’t want to be too diluted, but no sense in missing opportunities either.
26th June 2007 at 5:19 pm
Yeah, but without doubt in my mind, without Blaenau Gwent, we would have won Bromley. I know the people who would have come who were there instead and if they’d decamped to Bromley, it would have been enough.
26th June 2007 at 5:40 pm
BBC now reporting that the Labour party have been warned to expect Blair to resign:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6242788.stm