Elections 2005 posted by Richard Seymour

I'm kicking off the Tomb's election coverage with a story that will percolate away quietly during this election, just beneath the radar of media attention, is the fact that Respect could well take a seat from Labour right in its heartland. Today, Respect's website carries claims from George Galloway that during the last Euro elections Respect topped the poll in Bethnal & Bow Green. Well, other analyses differ , and I haven't seen the figures, but what is abundantly clear is that Respect has an extraordinary base of support in the East End. We already have had a councillor elected in Poplar, name of Oliur Rahman, and almost took the Isle of Dogs seat too.

Unsurprisingly, the sitting MP in Bethnal Green & Bow, a pro-war airhead known as Oona King, has taken to libelling her Respect opponent . But bar rigging the vote - which is what Labour was found to have been involved in up in Birmingham, where they were faced with the prospect of the People's Justice Party taking seats from them - there is not much else Ms King can do, as she has few appealing policies.

During the vote in parliament over Labour's cuts to benefits for single mothers, Oona King decided to leave the country rather than vote for her constituents and against her leader. She is a particularly lazy MP, attending only 64% of votes in parliament. But of the votes she was interested in, she came out strongly for the Iraq war, top-up fees for students, ID cards, foundation hospitals, and also supported New Labour's "anti-terrorism" laws. The only good left-wing policies she has supported were abolishing section 28, Thatcher's law for homophobes, and ending fox-hunting. Don't shoot the fluffy-wuffy foxes, let's kill Iraqis instead. She is also someone's landlady, owning a two-bedroom flat from which she receives rent. (Here resume is here ).

For these and reasons like these, the enthusiasm that the Respect campaing has generated in the East End is entirely justified. King's politics are an insult to her working class constituents, and she deserves to be ousted in this election.

Note to stalkers: I will be attending this rally tonight. Wear your usual red underwear.