Leicester Mercury political correspondent
Has the Lib Dem nomination become a poisoned chalice?
Just a year ago the Lib Dem nomination for Leicester South was coveted.
Having won a by-election against Sir Peter Soulsby in 2004 there was genuine expectation among some grassroots members that Mr Gill could pull off a win against an ailing Labour Party in May last year.
It was not to be. Sir Peter bucked a national trend and increased Leicester’s vote share in Leicester South.
On Satuday Sir Peter pulled the trigger on a starting pistol for a by-election in South, but this time around there doesn’t appear to be much hope of an upset.
Whoever wins the Labour nomination, many predict, can pack their bags for Westminster.
The main issue that the national media will be focusing on in this Labour safe seat will be the performance of the Lib Dems.
Their candidate slumped in sixth in Barnsley last week. A strong showing in South will give Nick Clegg some breathing space, and Barnsley can be dismissed as an anomaly.
But another terrible performance will increase the pressure on the party’s leadership, and stoke media speculation that the party could be overtaken by UKIP.
The Lib Dem nomination was a big prize just one year ago, has it now become a poisoned chalice?
about 1 year ago
I think your analysis is correct but I also think there will be a national focus on what happens to the Conservatives in this by-election as well. Firstly it is pretty unclear who will run for them here as Ross Grant is their Mayoral candidate. I think Leicester Tories were quite wounded that they didn’t finish in second place at the General Election. Are they going to do what they’ve done in other by-elections recently and soft peddle it? The local tories will be fighting hard to keep some of their existing council seats, some of which are under threat. Apart from the fact that the Leicester Conservatives are split right down the middle and there is a power struggle going on right in the heart of them doesn’t bode well for them. It’s not a happy time being a Leicester Conservative at the moment!!