Turnout at 5PM was at 71.96% according to the French Interior Ministry, and as polls in small villages across France closed at 6PM it really was neck and neck between the two men hoping to serve as President. The abstention figure for the second ballot was 20.1% compared to 16% in the 2007 election. This will largely be due to other candidates who were defeated in the first ballot who called on their supporters to abstain in the second ballot.

Mr Sarkozy was the first incumbent President for more than 50 years to be defeated in the first round of the election which was held on April 22nd. During the first ballot Hollande secured 10,272,705 votes (28.63% of the vote) whereas Sarkozy secured 9,753,629 votes (27.18& of the vote). In the second ballot François Hollande beat Nicolas Sarkozy by 52% of the vote to 48% of the vote (AFP).

Hollande has been the favourite to win throughout the Presidential campaign, he defeated Sarkozy in the first ballot and has now defeated him again in the second ballot. However the impact of Hollande’s election is expected to have a significant impact on the markets and many including the German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be hoping President Hollande softens his approach to the Eurozone.

The full results are below.

First Preference Votes in the London Mayoral Election 2012:

Boris Johnson, Conservative – 971,931 votes – 44.01%

Ken Livingstone, Labour – 889,918 votes – 40.30%

Jenny Jones, Green Party – 98,913 votes – 4.48%

Brian Paddick, Liberal Democrat – 91,774 votes – 4.16%

Siobhan Benita, Independent – 83,914 votes – 3.80%

Lawrence Webb, UKIP – 43,274 votes – 1.96%

Carlos Cortiglia, BNP – 28,751 votes – 1.30%

Second Preference Votes:

Boris Johnson, Conservative – 971,931 votes – 44.01% + 82,880 – 44.74% = 1,054,811 votes

Ken Livingstone, Labour – 889,918 votes – 40.30% + 102,355 – 55.26% = 992,273 votes.

This election was clearly a victory for the Labour Party and Ed Miliband after they won seats in the South of the country and councils such as Plymouth, Cardiff, Glasgow, Exeter and Harlow. Mr Miliband was hit by an egg after he delivered a speech congratulating Southampton Labour. The voting data is below for the council elections.

Councillors:

Labour Party – 2158 (+823)

Conservative Party – 1005 (-405)

Liberal Democrats – 431 (-336)

SNP – 424 (+57)

PC – 158 (-41)

Others – 646 (-131)

Councils:

Labour – 75 (+32)

Conservative – 42 (-12)

Lib Dem – 6 (-1)

SNP – 2 (+2)

PC – 0 (-1)

Others – 5 (-2)

NOC – 51 (-18)

Mayoral Votes:

Voters in 10 English cities voted on whether to have a directly elected Mayor or not. All but one of the Cities where a referendum was held voted against with only Bristol voting to have a directly elected Mayor. Leeds is the only City still to declare. These results are a blow to the Prime Minister, David Cameron who has pushed the ‘big society’ and localism agenda since before the general election in 2010.

It is literally neck and neck between Boris and Ken in London with the possibility of Ken sneaking through and the other parties fighting it out for third place. Rumours are that the Lib Dems could come 5th…oops. This result is expected later tonight.

Whilst the Conservatives may well win the Mayoralty, it looks like Labour will win the London Assembly. 1 in 10 Labour supports are alleged to have backed Boris but it goes to support the poll results which show Labour is more popular than Ken and Boris is more popular than the Conservatives.

Council elections are also happening today across most of the UK, the Liberal Democrats are expected to lose most of their councillors who were first elected in 2008 as a result of their part in the Coalition Government nationally and the Labour Party will be hoping to win councils including Glasgow. The Conservatives will hope to try and pick up some seats that will be lost by the Lib Dems whilst they face a threat of losing seats to the rapidly growing UKIP.

Today I have short blogs from members of the main three political parties about why you should vote for either the Conservatives, Labour or the Liberal Democrats. The links are below.

Cameron Brown on why you should vote Conservative today.

Ellis Palmer on why you should vote Labour today.

Tristan Pithers on why you should vote Lib Dem today.

Whatever you do please do go and use your democratic vote, voting matters. You can follow coverage of the election results, tonight on BBC1 from 11:35PM.

It’s the day of local elections across the UK today as well as the vote for the GLA and the eagerly anticipated election of the next Mayor of London. I make an unashamed call for you to get down to your local polling station and put your cross in the box marked ‘Liberal Democrat’. After the media coverage of the Mayoral election in the capital, you would be forgiven for thinking that the choice for London’s voters today is either ‘Red’ Ken Livingstone with his uncosted promises and unpaid taxes or Tory incumbent Boris Johnson, everyone’s favourite political Falstaff. There is a third option, however, in Liberal Democrat Brian Paddick.

This time, for the first time, Londoners are voting for a Mayor of London who will have control over the budgets of the Metropolitan Police and be the new Police and Crime Commissioner for London. After the shameful scenes that were beamed across the world from the riots in London last summer, is now the time to elect someone who knows nothing about policing? Is now the time to re-elect Boris, the man who oversaw the woeful response to the riots and an extraordinary lack of leadership and empathy with London boroughs torn apart by violence? Is it really time for Ken, the man who cannot even unite his own party behind him?

Brian Paddick understands policing after thirty-years at the Met, many of those spent at the very top. He understands what Londoners need from their Police Service and, crucially, how best to deliver it. He hasn’t spent the campaign bickering with Boris and caterwauling at Ken. Instead, he’s been out on the streets, talking to real Londoners about the issues facing real London. So, London, for fairer fares, 360,000 new homes, youth hubs, a commitment to keeping you safe and cleaner, greener transport for the capital, vote Brian Paddick for your Liberal Democrat Mayor.

London is not, of course, the be all and end all of today’s vote. In villages, towns and cities up and down the country local council elections will have a real impact on your day-to-day life. From council tax to rubbish collections, these are the votes that really matter in your street. So why vote Liberal Democrat? Well, not a single Liberal Democrat council in England has raised council tax, something which cannot be said for Labour or the Conservatives. Keeping money in the pockets of working people has driven Liberal Democrats both in Government and locally because this is a party that’s on your side. Liberal Democrats are an activists’ party, not funded by Unions or big business we have to be, and the ethos of every Liberal Democrat councillor in the country is to work for people’s best interests not vested interests.

Fairer taxes, the youth contract, money in the pockets of working families, help for pensioners and true focus on local interests. These are Liberal Democrat values and this is what you will get by voting Liberal Democrat today.

I have been active in campaigning for disability rights from a young age, and I believe Labour across the country, and Ken in London, is the only party that effectively stands up for disabled people during this period of economic hardship. My parents instilled in me the belief that if you work hard you can achieve in life, whether you’re able-bodied or disabled and this is what I intend to fulfil. I’ve been educated at every level of the British education system, from a special school nursery, a Catholic primary school, a Comprehensive secondary school to a grammar school sixth form, and in September, I will hopefully head to university; Labour is the only party that stands up for aspiration and growth, the other major parties are hell-bent on austerity and ensuring that the rigid class system remains in place.

What I’ve learnt is that in an ideal world everybody would be able to achieve their full potential. Sadly, we don’t live in an ideal world. We live in a world gripped by economic crisis, a lack of educational and employment opportunities and a government, determined to make cuts that will hit this country’s vulnerable, including its disabled, the hardest.

I want governments, both at a local and national level that stand up for the vulnerable, the hardest hit. But it isn’t enough just to say that, as the Lib Dems have done, we have to mean it.
I believe that the only way that we can successfully highlight the severity of these cuts is to ensure that young people are engaged fully in the political process, only a Labour vote can say ‘no’ to these harsh government policies.

This means getting more young people involved in politics. Many of my friends are first time voters tomorrow and many have been asking me, the politica geek, who they should vote for. You can vote for the Tory-led government that has cut EMA, raised tuition fees, cut taxes for the richest and imposed more taxes on the ‘squeezed middle; or you can vote for an alternative, the Labour Party, which fights for the poorest and the squeezed middle, would re-introduce EMA in London (and I’m sure across the country too), and pursues an agenda based on jobs, growth and an alternative to austerity.

I joined the Labour Party because I believe in power for the many, not the few and I want you to vote for them for the same reason.

Today you have a real choice. You can vote Labour and return to the days of waste, tax, spend and borrow policies of the past, or you can vote Conservative and we’ll roll our sleeves up tomorrow and continue delivering real value for money whilst protecting those key services we need most.

Every single person across this wonderful country of ours has a reason to go out and vote Conservative today; the lone parent no longer paying Income Tax because we’re putting up the personal allowance to £10,000. The pensioner getting the biggest-ever cash rise in the state pension of £5.30 a week. The entrepreneur who’s benefiting from a Corporation Tax cut so he can afford to employ again. The patient who’s seen the number of doctors increase, whilst NHS bureaucrats are being cut. The motorist who’s seen the cost of fuel 6p lower than it would’ve been because we’ve abolished Labour’s fuel duty escalator. The single Mum who’s benefiting from 15 hours a week extended free childcare for 3 and 4 year-olds. And finally, the 25 million who will see their income tax bill drop by up to £326 a year. This is what the Conservatives are doing in government; getting on with the job.

There’s only one box you can cross today: you can either support the Labour Party which proudly rewards laziness, discourages work, makes you pay for their mistakes, or you can support the party for the grafters, the patriots, the family-raisers, the community-builders – the Conservative Party.

London is the greatest city on Earth. It deserves a Mayor who represents the many, not the few. That’s why I ask you vote Boris Johnson today. Never again must Londoners see their Mayor take taxpayer-funded trips to communist Cuba, the broken promises, the waste, the hypocrisy and the Council Tax hikes. Boris is a Londoner’s Mayor. He’s cutting Council Tax and putting £300 back in your pocket, putting more Police on the streets, improving transport and securing an Olympic legacy the entire country will be proud of. Red Ken and his cronies should never be allowed near City Hall ever again.

By trusting people we help individuals grow stronger. By sharing responsibility we help society grow stronger. We believe that there is such thing as society, but it’s not the same thing as the state. The Conservative Party stands for a free society and a strong nation state; we want to give people more opportunity and power over their lives to make families stronger, to make society more responsible and to make Britain safer and greener. You’ve seen what Labour have done to our country. We’re paying for that now. Make sure when your pencil hovers over the ballot paper today, you remember which party is acting in the long term interests of our country. A country where our grandchildren aren’t paying off our debt. A country where work pays and welfare doesn’t. A country led by the Conservatives.

Labour are ahead in the polls nationally but are behind in London where Ken Livingstone is taking on the incumbent Mayor Boris Johnson. One poll shows the Conservative Mayor with a 12 point lead. London is an interesting example as Boris is more popular than the Conservatives yet Labour is more popular than Ken Livingstone.

The Coalition Government are likely to lose a significant number of seats tomorrow; particularly the Liberal Democrats who will be wiped out as a result of their role in propping up the Conservative-led government. We can expect Labour to do well in these local elections across England but not so well in London or Scotland. It wouldn’t be too surprising if UKIP take some seats from the Conservative Party as a number of key Tory grassroot members and CF officers have defected to UKIP within the last week and the Prime Minister is rapidly isolating those on the Conservative right.

Whoever you vote for, make sure you use your vote!

In London the living wage is currently £8.30 an hour which is a figure calculated and set by the GLA. Outside of London the living wage is £7.20 an hour.

I was carrying out research on the living wage during the Labour leadership contest and spoke to the Treasurer of Manchester City Council, Cllr Bernard Priest who was one of the people tasked with implementing the living wage for staff working at the Council. The council currently pay their staff at least £6.84 an hour which is 76p an hour more than the national minimum wage. It is still 36p less than the recommended living wage but it is certainly a step in the right direction. The Manchester minimum wage costs the council £85,000 a year however the council say it is worth it because it means that it increases staff loyalty and morale.

The benefits of a living wage have a significant impact on employees and their families. The living wage isn’t just simply about paying the employee more money, it helps hard working employees with families who are struggling to pay for essential items and put food on the table. The living wage has already benefitted over 8000 families across the UK and has proven to be a success which is why large companies such as KPMG and Barclays are staunch advocates. Additional benefits of a living wage are that it reduces staff turnover as members of staff are not looking for a better paid job, it increases motivation, loyalty and staff morale at the organisation and it is good publicity for the business.

We have all seen the results of the national minimum wage, so just imagine how many families can be lifted out of poverty if the breadwinner was paid more and just imagine the number of children who wouldn’t have to go hungry because their parents can’t afford to feed them properly or keep them warm.

Ed Miliband championed the living wage during his leadership campaign; it was one policy that made him stand out from the other leadership candidates, although the living wage campaign was supported by all 5 candidates. Ed Miliband won the leadership election as we all know, and he should now be championing the living wage even more and making the case to large businesses across the UK. Not every company is seeing a decrease in sales and companies such as Primark should be paying a living wage to their staff as they expand the company and see an increase in custom.

Urging businesses to sign up to a living wage campaign will be hard work during this time of economic uncertainty and the recession that we are going through. There are over 2.5 million people unemployed and businesses will argue against increasing the wages of their staff due to the uncertainty that they as businesses face. Yes, people may well be lucky to have a job in a recession that pays at least the minimum wage but there is still an opportunity to make the case for a living wage, and as you have read, the benefits far outweigh the cons and for that reason everybody should be making the case for a living wage in the UK.

TSF

On May 10th off duty police officers and staff (serving and retired) from each police force in England and Wales will march through London. They are protesting against incredibly hard and unfair changes being forced upon them by the Government after a report by Tom Winsor, a man with a privileged past and a less than gleaming professional track record. I don’t expect many people who are not involved in policing to have read the report or even paid a lot of attention to the changes which will be forced through.

What does this have to do with you? Well, we really ARE all in this together. And what ‘this’ is, is a great big horrible mess. The police are a public service. That means that we all rely on or are touched by what they do. Changes to policing mean changes to you. Whether you love the police or loathe them, there is absolutely no doubt that the implementation of the Winsor report is the beginning of erosion from which this country will never recover.

Every public service is facing this erosion and the only winners are those already rich enough to own shares in the private companies waiting in the wings to take over. The public service workers are the foundations of our society; the police, the doctors and nurses, the teachers and the rescue services. Whether you are happy with the service provided or whether you are alienated entirely from one or more of those services, there is no doubt at all that your experiences will suffer and become worse over the next few years.

Policing (along with almost all other public services) is being undermined publicly whilst individual officers are put under increasing pressure both at work and on a personal level with changing pay and conditions. Whilst we are not looking, a takeover is stealthily creeping forward. Any private company will look to profit over quality of service. In a competitive market obviously the two go hand in hand. But there will be no competition. There is only one police force and you will not be able to choose which one you call. You will simply call and your treatment will be arbitrary. The companies already involved in policing and looking to become more so are those already working within the Criminal Justice System. One of the companies runs the juvenile detention centres where pain is an authorised restraint tactic and young men are killing themselves rather than try to cope with the way they are being treated. That is the reality and it could be coming to your town, your street, and your loved ones.

So back to the London march on 10th May. Yes, it is a police march but that doesn’t mean it is a march only for the police. It is an opportunity for us all to say loud and clear that our public services are precious and must be protected. I will be there. I will be there because I care about how people are treated in society. I will be there because I am worried about my sons’ future and for my parents as they get older. I am worried for my neighbours. I am worried for you. Please consider joining me on 10th May in London to let this Government know that together we can stand strong and make things better. If we allow our differences to divide us we will be weak and overrun.  It doesn’t have to happen. Copy this and give it to at least one person and ask them to consider joining the march and ask them to pass this on to one more person.

We must temporarily set aside our differences if we ever hope for those differences to be addressed in the future. I am marching for my loved ones and for yours. I am a mother. I am a wife. I am a daughter. I am a member of the British public. I am you.

#antiwinsornetwork    #HOLDTHELINE

That was a guest blog by Cate Moore – @cate_a_moore who served with the Met Police as a Police Officer.