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Londoners were today thought to be turning out in their biggest numbers ever for a mayoral election, as the battle between Ken Livingstone and his maverick rival Boris Johnson went right to the wire.
Early projections put voter turnout as touching the 50 per cent mark - far higher than the 37 per cent and 35 per cent turnouts in 2004 and 2000 - amid indications that the closeness of the conflict between two of British politics' most colourful characters has caught the public's imagination.
A key indication of the high turnout came at a polling station in Streatham, south London, where 85 people were reported to have voted by 9.15am, out of 1,970 in total. If traditional voting patterns were repeated during the day this would give a final poll of just under 50 per cent.
The turnout was projected to be high in advance because opinion polls have put the mayoral conflict as too close to call, while the campaign between Mr Johnson and Mr Livingstone has also been one of the most personalised and most colourful ever.
Mr Livingstone upped the rhetoric yesterday when he described Mr Johnson, the former Spectator editor and newspaper journalist, as a "joke" and "celebrity" unable to take major political decisions.
The stakes in London could not be higher, with the winner being placed in charge of an £11.3billion budget to run public transport - much of which requires modernisation - police and fire services and promote the capital's economy. The elected mayor will also act as London's figurehead in the build-up to the Olympic Games in 2012.
Voting got off to a rocky start in the London borough of Barnet, however, when about 10 polling stations did not receive ballot papers until just after the election officially began, at 7am. Barnet Council said it "sincerely apologised" to voters for the slip-up.
As the London electorate cast their ballots, Labour councillors all over the country were holding their breath for a huge national backlash against the Prime Minister in local elections, in which some 4,000 seats on 160 councils were at stake.
Labour strategists fear that the party could record its lowest share of the vote since the 1970s, falling as low as 25 per cent and finishing third behind the Tories and Liberal Democrats. The Conservatives expect to secure more than 40 per cent with strong gains in northern England.
Results are expected overnight for more than 100 councils, but voters elsewhere - including London - will only have the results on Friday night.
Faced with the possibility of a heavy defeat, the Prime Minister is already planning an aggressive "relaunch" campaign, with new policies, a contrite and listening tone and a fresh attempt to expose divisions with the Conservatives, party sources said. His closest advisers have been drawing up plans to limit the damage.
In particular, Mr Brown is planning to unveil a draft Queen’s Speech at the end of this month to show that he is not running out of steam. It is expected to include measures on welfare, education reforms and involving the community in tackling crime.
Full list of candidates to be London Mayor:
Ken Livingstone (Labour Party)
Boris Johnson (Conservative Party)
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats)
Sian Berry (Green Party)
Gerard Batten (UK Independence Party)
Richard Barnbrook (British National Party)
Alan Craig (Christian Peoples Alliance and Christian Party)
Lindsey German (Left List)
Winston McKenzie (Independent)
Matt O'Connor (English Democrats)
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Ken is the only viable candidate who can develop further our transport system and thats why i voted for him.Vanessa,Walthamstow.
vanessa brightwell, london, uk
Good luck Boris, time to stop these gangs & crap public transport.
Mike, London, England
london is a city that the rich can afford and the poor live for free at the expense of everyone else. socialism does not work...get labour out and give the taxpayers of this country their money back. let individual choice flourish and stop taxing innovation, success, and the country into oblivion
Alex, London, England
Red Ken has had his day! Hoping that the electorate draw the same conclusion. At the same time,Boris has to stop playing the buffoon. On balance, time for Boris to be given a go.
Paul, Halesworth, uk
GOOD LUCK Boris!!
Edwin, Bucharest,
I'm supporting Gerard Batten!
I hope NuLabour get the thrashng they deserve.
KS, Fife, Great Britain, not the EU!
if only i could vote for Borris shame i live in leeds
terry gilchrist , garforth, w. yorkshire
It will be a big loss for London if Ken loses - he has made some couregeous decisions and has gone against the "establishment" on numerous occasions - and so has made powerful influential enemies in the process.
Good on ya Ken - best of luck mate!
Michael J , Leicester, UK
What a great day, voting Red Ken out on May Day.
Michiel, London,
Steve's right, it is the most hated, spiteful government in recent history, so long as recent history begins in 1991. Incompetent this lot may be, but I don't recall any comments of the nature of "get on your bike" or "there is no such thing as society."
jp, london, uk
How many of those who demonise the BNP have ever visted their website or do they just robotically repeat what politcical Masters tell them to.
The BNP and their Growing number of Supporters are not afraid to think different to what the Government tells them, dare you think differently?
Adrian Peirson, luton, Beds
"Gordon Brown is Going Down,Going Down,Going Down"
"Gordon Brown is Going Down,Going Down,Going Down,
Goodbye Gordon".
Peter, Manchester, England
In the 8 years that Ken was Mayor he has been through good and bad. His time is up, this last adrenaline boost will end in tears as an old man is chasing the burnt remains of his ambition. It's time for Boris to stand up, blow out the cinders and relight the fire of England. Boris.
Sam Skalla, Hadley Wood, England
Mayer Cohen,
"The only alternative to Ken is Racism, Fascism and Capitalism in its most brutal form"
Please. What short memories we have....
Albert, Sussex,
If Ken could engage in a political debate without resorting to ad hominem, I'd have considered it him. My family and I voted for him last time; we've switched to first choice Paddick, 2nd choice Boris.
M. Ibn Tahhara, London, UK
The only alternative to Ken is Racism, Fascism and Capitalism in its most brutal form. Londoners will make a fatal mistake if they vote for any one else. Even voting liberal democrats and greens is a wasted vote. Be Sensible English people love your city and its multicultural environment, vote Ken
Mayer Cohen, London, United Kingdom
"Brown is planning to unveil a DRAFT Queen's Speech"... He's learning! First listen to the lambasting, then appoint a review committee, then vocalize the spin and THEN cock it up. Not the other way round as usual!
Mike L, Chippenham, Wilts
Ken has made too many mistakes with London's finances. The Labour Government has been shoring up his administration with little accountability. The Institution of Mayor through its governance runs London. Ken has failed to represent all sections of the London community. Boris will do this.
mike lincoln, wakefield,
Hope all you like Brown - it is in vain. Today will see the first steps in dismantling the most hated, spiteful government in recent history. A government that has taxed us to ridiculous lengths by whatever means it can and has treacherously handed over control of this country to a corrupt EU.
Steve, London, UK
Wasn't it stated the more that turn out the better odds Ken gets?
I just hope its all those conservative constituencies with the high turnouts.
John Edwards, Hornchurch, Essex
The forms I received contained directions to the wrong polling station, I ended up being led on a bit of a wild goose chase before finding the right spot. Stranger still is bring on the electoral rolls at all, as I had not registered, but all the other British students in my halls also got forms.
Gilman Grundy, Tower Hamlets,
The fact that the BNP are urging their supporters to choose Boris as their second choice candidate speaks volumes !
emma jordan, Harrow, UK