Ken vs. Boris: It's So On

in the GE london isn't exactly a 'swing state'.

xpost

so the symbolic value of labour winning is far less than that of a tory winning.

yeah, read it again and got the meaning second time. At first i thought you were implying London ought to vote con/lib but somehow always ended up Labour.

it's been a very strange election campaign, at least seen from outside, almost entirely based on the two candidates slandering each other. there probably are a few people who would vote for a candidate on the grounds that they'll raise the congestion charge to £25 for people in big cars, just as there might be a few weirdos who want to see the routemaster back. but most of the slanging has been about who's a bigger racist/anti-semite/islamophobe/useful idiot of islamists.

I do get the impression that they're like two good mates trading banter though. Its more a sense of who can ridicule the other in the most creative way than the knives really being out

aka the London Election Zing Crew

the real arguing is done by proxy -- cf a million evening standard articles about ken's trot cronyism and a million guardian pieces on boris using the word 'picaninnies'.

The Standard headline boards are the worst aspect of this campaign.

otm

I do get the impression that they're like two good mates trading banter though

definitely. some back-slapping as they walked off the set at the end of last night's Question Time.

The Standard headline boards are the worst aspect of this campaign.

i have been sorely tempted to grab these and through them in the thames, when greeted by them at waterloo station

I have been sorely tempted to grab the Evening Standard leader writers and throw them in the Thames, but it's a bit of a walk from High Street Ken.

High Street Ken vs Red Ken

Just got a Boris-promoting leaflet through my door in which he boasts he's going to withdraw the free bus passes of all the young people who break the Behaviour Code on buses. I really wish he meant he was going to confiscate them personally and I would have liked to have seen him fecking try.

I hope Boris and people intending to vote for him know that this is already the case.

I hope Boris and people intending to vote for him die.

There is one photo in the leaflet that drips smugness. He is SMIRKING in it! Which either means his pr peeps are really thick or they really are playing up to the lovable buffoon thing.

I might burn it, actually, it's ruining my afternoon.

Fuck, the galloway bus just came by and I had nothing to throw.

you should have thrown yourself

The fucking Galloway bus went past me again on Saturday, dude is stalking me clearly.

Are people really going to vote for Boris because he's "funny"?

He's not funny

He's "funny".

I'm hoping that there are very few who would vote for him only for that reason.

The lib dems have put three leaflets through my letterbox in the last two days. Live in Hounslow, where apparently EVEN KEN would vote lib dem (so they're claiming). There are a whole load of charts explaining why this is the case but...ahem, recycle bin.

i wonder if anyone is voting for sian berry 'cos she's quite fit'

me

Hmm, can't decide:

http://www.green-engage.co.uk/SianBerry2forweb.pdf.jpg

Berry does look attractive, when I see pictures of her.

I don't believe in "'funny'". Either you're funny or you're not. BJ is not.

Are people really going to vote for Boris because he's "funny"?

Believe this is called getting the student vote.

she is fittest out of the four.

i would vote green anyway, out of contempt.

But there aren't any other reasons to vote FOR Boris are there? (As opposed to voting against Ken.)

All of the London students on my course who I've asked about Boris/Ken say they are heading back to uni this week and are therefore not heading back to London again to vote.

(Even though their university is only in Surrey.)

members of my family are actively campaigning for boris :(

To suggest a possible answer to Tracer: incipient Toryism still the love that dare not speak its name, especially amongst under 40s, so "because he's funny" may well be cover-phrase for "because I am repellent Tory shitebag".

I was going to put Green as my 2nd choice, but I'm not sure after that whole "taking a taxi is greener than taking an empty bus, even though the bus is going to run anyway you stupid twat" thing. I guess Paddick might as well get it, it's not going to matter anyway.

not sure many people vote FOR ken, do they, as opposed to against boris?

^^

Yeah, when I hold my nose and tick the Labour box for our local elections on Thursday it's not cos I want to dick-ride Gordon Brown et al.

i wasn't going to vote anyway but turns out i will be in london rather than where im registered so fortunately i go through this teflon style.

Well Boris wasn't running in the last mayoral election and Ken managed to get in.

The only real problem I see with Ken is that he rolls over for any property developer with a business card. But his "rule" that 50% of all new housing be affordable is unheard of in, say, the US for instance, and mitigates this for me some.

I will vote for the Labour candidate and against the Conservative one.

I suppose I will tick second preference Green though I guess that won't do them any good.

Let's hope for your sakes, London, that this whole Boris For Mayor stuff is just one elaborate Rickroll at everyone's expense.

For what it's worth, at the last election I voted in, I voted the Green candidate because she was a BBW. To my shock, she got voted in.

I heard some folks plan to tick Green first Ken second, claiming it will Send Ken A Message but not actually hinder his chances - the theory being that Boris won't get over 50% of 1st choice votes so all those 2nd choices will count for Ken. Does that makes sense? Strikes me as risky.

I briefly considered doing that, but it's not worth the risk. BORIS SURGES AHEAD IN POLLS etc.

In our local elections...

One very glossy/professional leaflet from the Tories,

One medium cost printed picture leaflet from LibDems, plus doorstep visit from candidate herself,

One photocopied a4 sheet (no pics), from Labour.

Guess which currently has no seats on our council, and aren't exactly holding breath...

I still wonder whether enough voters actually understand Second Transferable Vote to make this fannying around worthwhile.