Blackburn
Notional 2005 Results:
Labour: 17514 (42%)
Conservative: 9498 (22.8%)
Liberal Democrat: 8583 (20.6%)
Other: 6063 (14.6%)
Majority: 8016 (19.2%)
Actual 2005 result
Conservative: 9553 (22.9%)
Labour: 17562 (42%)
Liberal Democrat: 8608 (20.6%)
BNP: 2263 (5.4%)
Green: 783 (1.9%)
UKIP: 954 (2.3%)
Other: 2082 (5%)
Majority: 8009 (19.2%)
2001 Result
Conservative: 12559 (31%)
Labour: 21808 (53.9%)
Liberal Democrat: 3264 (8.1%)
UKIP: 1185 (2.9%)
Other: 1668 (4.1%)
Majority: 9249 (22.8%)
1997 Result
Conservative: 11690 (24.6%)
Labour: 26141 (55%)
Liberal Democrat: 4990 (10.5%)
Referendum: 1892 (4%)
Other: 2784 (5.9%)
Majority: 14451 (30.4%)
Boundary changes: minor changes, Blackburn loses around 1,000 voters in some split rural wards to Rossendale and Darwen
Profile: a former centre of the textile industry now fallen on harder times. Blackburn is a mix of deprived inner-city wards dominated by Muslim voters, white working class areas and Conservative voting suburbs. According to the 2001 census around a quarter of the population is Muslim. Several far-right candidates from the BNP and splinter group the English First Party have won seats on Blackburn and Darwen Council in the past. In 2005 the BNP got just over 5% of the vote, just beating the former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan, Craig Murray, who was standing as an independent against Jack Straw, the then Foreign Secretary.
Outgoing MP: Jack Straw(Labour) born 1946, Essex. Educated at Brentwood School and the University of Leeds. Elected President of the NHS in 1969. Prior to his election he was a barrister specialising in criminal law, a researcher for ITV and, from 1974 to 1976 a special advisor to Barbara Castle. First elected in Blackburn in 1977. Served as Shadow Education Secretary under Neil Kinnock, Shadow Environment Secretary under John Smith and Shadow Home Secretary under Tony Blair. After Labour`s victory in 1997 Straw became Home Secretary. He subsequently served as Foreign Secretary between 2001 and 2006 when he was demoted to Leader of the House of Commons. He served a Gordon Brown`s campaign manager in the 2007 Labour leadership election and was subsequently appointed Secretary of State for Justice. In October 2006 he controversially criticised Muslim women wearing the veil (more information at They work for you)
Candidates: 
Michael Law-Riding (Conservative) Blackburn with Darwen councillor. Jack Straw(Labour) born 1946, Essex. Educated at Brentwood School and the University of Leeds. Elected President of the NHS in 1969. Prior to his election he was a barrister specialising in criminal law, a researcher for ITV and, from 1974 to 1976 a special advisor to Barbara Castle. First elected in Blackburn in 1977. Served as Shadow Education Secretary under Neil Kinnock, Shadow Environment Secretary under John Smith and Shadow Home Secretary under Tony Blair. After Labour`s victory in 1997 Straw became Home Secretary. He subsequently served as Foreign Secretary between 2001 and 2006 when he was demoted to Leader of the House of Commons. He served a Gordon Brown`s campaign manager in the 2007 Labour leadership election and was subsequently appointed Secretary of State for Justice. In October 2006 he controversially criticised Muslim women wearing the veil (more information at They work for you)
Bobby Anwar (UKIP) 
Damian Brown (Independent)
2001 Census Demographics
Total 2001 Population: 99905
Male: 48.9%
Female: 51.1%
Under 18: 29.5%
Over 60: 17.4%
Born outside UK: 13.7%
White: 70.9%
Black: 0.3%
Asian: 27.5%
Mixed: 1%
Other: 0.3%
Christian: 57.4%
Muslim: 25.9%
Full time students: 3.7%
Graduates 16-74: 12.9%
No Qualifications 16-74: 39.7%
Owner-Occupied: 67.1%
Social Housing: 22.2% (Council: 11.5%, Housing Ass.: 10.7%)
Privately Rented: 6.8%
Homes without central heating and/or private bathroom: 15.5%
12 years ago Jack Straw decided that judges should have to declare whether they were freemasons. Now Straw has reversed his decision:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/blog/2009/nov/05/jack-straw-judges-masons
I think this result had a somewhat distorted result last time, and also rather doubt it would have as large a Conservative increase as national – but still a substantial one.
May 2010
Most likely
*Lab 19,367 43.9% +1.9%
Con 12,617 28.6% +5.8%
LD 5,515 12.5% -8.1%
BNP 2,559 5.8%
UKIP 1,147 2.6%
Green 1,103 2.5%
Oths 1,809 4.1%
Total votes 44,117
Lab majority 6,750 15.3% (-3.9%)
Swing 2.0% from Lab to Con
Lab hold
A by-election in the Queen’s Park ward last night resulted in a Labour gain from the LDs although the LD councillor had subsequently been expelled from the group on the council. 12% swing from LD to Lab. I presume that the ward is in this constituency rather than Rossendale & Darwen though perhaps someone could confirm this.
Congratulations to Jack Straw for supporting the campaign to save election night. In a world of myriad 24 hour news channels it would have been strange in my view for the country to have had to sit around twiddling our thumbs for more than 15 hours waiting to see who was going to run the fifth biggest economy in the world.
Yes I agree. Congratulations to Jack Straw for seeing sense on this. I think I was one of the very first to say that we will only protect election night if MPs were willing to back legislation to do it. I never really thought they would, but I’m delighted to find parliament working in this case.
The key thing now is to ensure that returning officers do not attempt to get round the law with spurious reasons for delay puffed up to ’special circumstances’. Already there have been mumblings and tut-tutting that they may begin the count only to cancel it after a couple of hours due to ‘problems with postal votes’ or even more ridiculous ‘tiredness’.
If we’re not careful, they will just go through the motions of beginning the counts without any real intention of doing so.
Be careful what you wish for. The State getting too involved in how and when votes are counted at election time? Doesn’t sound too healthy an option to me….
Well since they already decide whether they are going to deem to hold an election at all-Glasgow North East and Leicestershire North West being particularly blatant examples of delaying-I think we should welcome when the ’state’ determines to at least have the count as quickly as possible following close of polls.
What is the justification for this scaremongering Doktorb?
12 years of a Labour Government, Shaun
(1) The Representation of the People Act 1983 is amended as follows—
(2) In Schedule 1 (Parliamentary elections rules), in paragraph 44, after sub-paragraph (1) insert—
“(1A) The counting of votes in a parliamentary election shall start within four hours of the close of the poll, save in exceptional circumstances.
(1B) The Secretary of State shall, after consulting the Electoral Commission, prepare draft guidance on the definition of “exceptional circumstances” for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1A).
(1C) The draft guidance prepared under sub-paragraph (1B) may not be issued unless a draft has been laid before, and approved by both Houses of Parliament.”.
Yes, Lib Dem Candidate is confirmed as Paul English
http://www.libdems.org.uk/parliamentary_candidates_detail.aspx?name=Paul_English&pPK=224e394c-2373-4349-ad01-7158fe82cef3
He stood in Skipton & Ripon at the last General.
I wouldn”t underestimate this Candidate, and he seems a shrewd selection by the Lib Dems.
He has slipped in quietly un-noticed, but research shows, amongst other things, he does a lot of work with the Muslim Community in Yorkshire.
Liberal Democrats now help to control the local authority, after over 40 years domination by Labour, who now sit in oppostion.
I smell an upset here…….. probably to be discussed in future years as “Did you sit up to see Straw go” similar to the decimation in 1997 of Tories.
I’m as loyal a LibDem as you can imagine, but even I am not going to start predicting Straw to lose!
LABOUR HOLD, quite obviously.
Well of course Straw must be favourite to hold on, and I think he will do so.
But its not utterly ridiculous to suggest he may lose. Blackburn doesn’t look entirely safe in all circumstances. And it is just possible that if the Tories were to get their version of 1997 against Labour then Straw could be out.