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Tony Blair's Labour Party.

A quick British election poll roundup:

The ICM poll for the Sunday Telegraph gave Labour its largest lead so far with a 40% share of the vote, a full 10 points ahead of the Conservatives and enough to give Tony Blair a majority of more than 150 seats....

The less-established CommunicateResearch for the Independent on Sunday also gives Labour a 40% share of the vote but makes it only a six point lead ahead of Michael Howard's party....

The dissenting voice in this picture of Labour optimism is the result of the internet-based YouGov poll for the Sunday Times which places the two main parties neck and neck, with Labour down two on the week to 36%, the Conservatives up two to 35% and the Liberal Democrats also gaining a point to 23% - their highest rating on any poll of the campaign so far....

Polling in the Labour-Conservative marginals suggests that Labour is on 42% in its battleground seats, compared with 36% for the Conservatives and 18% for the Liberal Democrats. This represents a swing of just 1.65% from Labour to the Tories since the 2001 election and suggests only eight seats would change hands on an, albeit unlikely, uniform swing in those marginals.

But the marginal battle between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats appears to be neck and neck with the Tories on 40%, the Lib Dems on 37% and Labour on 19%. This is an improvement for Michael Howard over 2001 but with a swing of only 1.45% to his party he would gain only nine seats from Charles Kennedy's party on these figures.

The ICM poll also recorded voters' views on the performance of the party leaders - Tony Blair was judged to be having a good election by 40%, while 54% said he was performing badly, a rating of -14. By contrast Gordon Brown was given a rating of +40, Michael Howard +18 and Charles Kennedy scored best, with +48.

The Mail on Sunday's survey by the British Polling Index put another spin on the battle, claiming Labour faces more of an uphill task in getting its core vote out. It put Labour three points ahead of the Tories out of all voters, but out of those "certain to vote" put the Tories ahead, 36% against 35%.

All-in-all, a mixed bag. Overall, though, Tony Blair and the Labour Party are right where they want to be against the feckless Conservative Party.

Think "feckless" is a little harsh?

Then you haven't seen the Tories' lame campaign posters.

Think "lame" is a little much?

Well, see for yourself:

Campaigning on hospital germs?

Just dreadful.

John O'Sullivan has more in National Review on the Conservative Party's failure to effectively articulate conservative principles:

...the Tories have to challenge and demystify all the soothing myths of Official Britain in defense of the common sense and economic realities of Market Britain.

....if the Tories don't become the champions of Market Britain, whether they win or lose won't really matter.

This is precisely why we can, with a clear conservative conscience, support and root for a Tony Blair victory. The undeniable truth is that Tony Blair has been on the right side of history, time and time again, standing with the United States when it would have been politically expedient to sell President Bush down the river on Iraq.

Democrats could learn a thing or two from Tony Blair about being on the right side of history. Left-wing American pundits have been salivating over the potential of an Iraq-based Blair loss since before the commencement of the invasion. For American liberals, taking Blair down could be a moment of transference, a cathartic healing ritual.

If Tony Blair survives the upcoming election, in the context of John Howard's and George W. Bush's victories in Australia and the United States, respectively, it will signal to the remaining terrorist insurgency in Iraq that the free world is united behind the spread of liberty in the Middle East. Blair's victory would reassure otherwise ambivalent poll-watching heads of state that it is okay to support the United States in the drive for democracy around the world.

Patrick Ruffini has more on the poor Conservative Party campaign:

I want to bring to your attention this shameful advert from the Tories, to be shown in movie theatres across Britain. It uses the WMD issue and Bush footage to attack Blair. Sure -- I'd expect this kind of crap from the Liberal Democrats, but not from the Conservatives. Sadly, I was mistaken. It's pure desperation, and another reason for American conservatives to back Labour on 5 May.

So, still wondering for whom you would/should vote?

You could always take this quiz on the subject.

Posted by Will Franklin · 17 April 2005 10:31 PM

Comments

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at April 18, 2005 08:16 AM

Posted by: Zsa Zsa at April 18, 2005 08:47 AM