When Theresa May pissed on the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act and called an election, everyone thought it was a foregone conclusion. Labour was 20 - 25% behind in the polls, so it was obvious they would lose. And then they released a manifesto which promised voters policies that had been off the table for a generation: higher taxes on the rich, re-nationalising failing privatised public services, ending austerity and rolling back cuts. And suddenly, things are different:
Labour has slashed the Conservatives' lead in the polls to just five points, the latest YouGov/Times results show.
The party has made consistent gains in recent weeks as leader Jeremy Corbyn claimed his message was finally getting through to voters.
The results show a four point change since last week when the Tories were leading by nine percentage points - the first time Labour had narrowed the gap to single figures since Theresa May called the snap election on 18 April.
It seems that UK voters like moderate, Northern European social democracy (or, as the Tories call it, "socialism"). Unfortunately, they're saddled with a political establishment that regards such policies as unacceptable, and an unfair electoral system designed to constrain choice within establishment limits. And its now clear that if UK voters want any real choice, they need to do away with both.
