Andrew Gilligan says Boris is the real winner

In this evenings Evening Standard, Andrew Gilligan says, “The great Tory winner of Brown’s “big bottle” may not, in the end, be David Cameron, but Boris Johnson.”

Here’s the Andrew’s reasoning:

The unhappiest Labour politician this week, however, may not be Gordon Brown but Ken Livingstone. Ken made no secret of his desire for a May 2008 general election, coinciding with his own re-election bid, because that is Boris Johnson’s worst nightmare.

I know quite a few Londoners who wouldn’t vote Tory in a general election, but might be prepared to back Boris for Mayor. Having the two polls on the same day would reduce the chance of those people voting for Boris. Boris’s campaign would also lose vast amounts of vital media attention if it were submerged in a broader national election.

Now, however, a national poll looks almost impossible in May 2008. King Newt and the Blond Bombshell will be fighting it out on their own. The great Tory winner of Brown’s “big bottle” may not, in the end, be David Cameron, but Boris Johnson.

One of the benefits of having so many newspapers, is that there are plenty of journalists, each vying to spot a trend or an angle. Well done Andrew Gilligan, this analysis is spot on. Gordon Brown will certainly not now be interested in election campaigning, and so I don’t think will himself be seen to spend too much time campaigning for Ken, he’ll leave it all to his lieutenants.

I think the time has come to create a London Mayor category. It’s bound to be the biggest show in town in 2008.