Ed Milliband predicted to win - The Election of May 5th 2015
Leading up to the UK general election, the Conservatives and the Labour parties were extremely close in the popularity polls, with Labour reaching forward during the last few days before May 5th, so many newspapers assuming that Ed Milliband would be the next Prime Minister. Following the 'failure' (as some may view it) of the Tori and Lib Dems coalition,this was to be the case, and hypothetically, it was time for Labour to come into power, as the UK often switches between the two leading parties for the seat of Prime Minister.
Nonetheless, the Conservatives remained victorious, winning a slight majority thus the need for coalition was no more.
But despite all the predictions of a Labour victory, why did they lose?
The obvious answer would be they simply did not win enough seats. Following 2005, the Labour party won 349 seats, a clear majority considering they only needed 326 to take the seat of Prime Minster-without the need for a coalition. However, they lost 91 seats in 2010, leaving them with 258.
A contributing factor would be how Milliband is portrayed in the media. He is often compared to Wallace from Wallace and Gromit, and the media emphasize the fact that he has never been seen eating a sandwich in public (in which he looks like he's actually enjoying it - e.g Ed Milliband and the bacon sandwich pictures.)
However, would you not vote for a party just because their leader hugely resembles a character made of clay? Hopefully not.
The most obvious factor in Labours loss this year is the sudden popularity of the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) in Scotland. In previous elections, Labour would usually win the majority of the 59 seats in Scotland, however, this year SNP triumphed 56 of the 59 available seats in Scotland.
If we say Labour did win all the seats in Scotland, it would bring their grand total of seats this year to 291, which is still quite a way off of a majority. Maybe the inability to eat a sandwich in the public eye contributes more to a majority after all.
However, would you not vote for a party just because their leader hugely resembles a character made of clay? Hopefully not.
The most obvious factor in Labours loss this year is the sudden popularity of the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) in Scotland. In previous elections, Labour would usually win the majority of the 59 seats in Scotland, however, this year SNP triumphed 56 of the 59 available seats in Scotland.
If we say Labour did win all the seats in Scotland, it would bring their grand total of seats this year to 291, which is still quite a way off of a majority. Maybe the inability to eat a sandwich in the public eye contributes more to a majority after all.
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