By-elections delight everyone, mainly because parties wil actually give a toss about electioneering, and send the true big guns down to help. Maybe you could be lucky and have Gordon Brown come round for tea, or play skittles with Dave “Call Me Dave” Cameron. Maybe Nick Clegg will come and rack up your wife for his 31st shag?
The latest two announcements of by-election include a shock, and a non-shock. Boris’s cards were on the wall the moment he signed up with the Mayor’s race, and as a result Henley look forward to welcoming another Tory MP into the hotseat. It’s about as safe as saying that Ulrika Johnson will soon have a fifth kid.
Quite what the toffs of Henley will think of not one, but TWO candidates from the ‘Miss Great Britain Party’ is anyone’s guess, though I imagine that Tories may lose a few members through the heart attack of seeing nice, young buxom ladies, bouncing down the river…almost makes you want to visit Henley doesn’t it?!
However, eyes are all focused on Mr David Davis (not the only DD to be in a by-election by any means!). Following the outcry at the vote regarding 42-day detentions, DD resigned as Shadow Home Secretary, and announced that he would fight the seat on the terms of civil rights. Trouble is, he hasn’t got someone to punch against.
Both Labour and the Lib Dems will not put a candidate up, seeing as they believe it to be certain that DD will be re-elected, and probably, back as Shadow Home Secretary, as soon as can be. Instead, this leaves an empty ring, and one man has dared to throw his hat in and give it all it’s worth, former Editor of the Sun Kelvin MacKenzie.
Remebering that the Sun has supported the implementation of 42-days from the beginning, Kelvin knows he will be on a firm platform, even running it by Mr Murdoch at a drinks part. His relative success as an independent candidate in the local elections in May suggest he has enough celebrity status to be able to carry it off.
And as if it couldn’t get worse for DD, he’s now been accused of having ‘intimate’ phone calls with the Chief Executive of Liberty. Whilst these claims are currently being persued for an apology, you can’t help but think that the Sun knows who it will support from day one. The perfect front page story, all it needed as the MacKenzie headline, and wahey, King Kel would be on his way.
Personally, I like DD, I believe he is an ideal leader, and whenever he speaks, gives the voice of authority. However, to call a by-election on a single issue, is brave, but foolish. In trying to do write for the country, he may find himself losing the biggest job of all.
