News / Politics

Nick Clegg in real danger of losing Sheffield Hallam seat

Thursday, 02 April 2015 6:17 PM [ Last Update: Thursday, 02 April 2015 6:21 PM ]

Poll: Lib Dem leader will lose seat

He is the face of the Liberal Democrats, but now Nick Clegg is predicted to lose his seat of Sheffield Hallam.

According to the latest polls, Clegg is trailing the Labour candidate Oliver Coppard by 2 points and is on course to lose his seat. If this happens it would be one of the highest profile upsets of the 2015 general election.

But, commenting on the polls while campaigning in Scotland, Mr Clegg seems unconcerned, saying “The poll, as it happens, didn’t even mention the candidates’ names and our own polling. Where it does it always shows a significant uplift in our support, and just if you look at the way people have voted rather than what they’ve said to Lord Ashcroft since 2010, people in Sheffield have consistently voted Liberal Democrat.”

It’s a far cry from the 2010 general election, where the Deputy Prime Minister comfortably won his seat with more than 50% of the vote. But the last five years of Coalition with their former Conservative arch-rivals has damaged the Liberal Democrats. Many of their voters feel betrayed after what they see as broken promises by Clegg and his party.

Meanwhile Labour leader Ed Miliband’s former election coordinator Tom Watson has said that, “this seat is winnable for Labour. I have never encountered such animosity on the doorstep against an incumbent MP, particularly one as high-profile. There are two issues that come up time and again: his position on tuition fees and Sheffield Forgemasters, which has not been forgotten.”

A spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats said, “We are never complacent, we don't take any votes for granted but we are confident on winning because Nick's been the local MP there for ten years, he's got a record in Sheffield that we are happy to defend and his constituents appreciate.”

While most believe Clegg will win his seat, the poll at the very least shows the Lib Dems are a party in decline, and the next month of campaigning will be more important than ever.

MM/SKL

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