For anyone who followed the UK general election of 1997, the phrase “Were you still up for Portillo?” carries strong resonance.
In 1992, the Conservatives had been in power for 13 long years. There was excitement in the Labour ranks. The polls looked great. At worst, they would be the largest party in a hung Parliament, but outright victory looked on the cards. Labour even held a rally that turned into a (premature) victory celebration. Then came election night, and as the votes rolled in, it became clear that the Tories had won. They picked up 42% of the vote, to Labour’s 34.5% and 17% for the third party Liberal Democrats. Although they had a reduced majority, they remained in power.
It was a real body blow. Looking back, yes, the polls were wrong, but they were clearly more ambiguous than people had admitted.
Fast forward five years. The polls looked great. Labour had had a substantial lead for three years. But people were burned from 1992. Nobody dared hope that the Tories were finally going to be beaten.
Then the polls closed, and the exit poll was announced. One commentator described it as akin to "an asteroid hitting the planet and destroying practically all life on Earth". It forecast a large victory for Labour, and indeed it was. Not just large; Labour won a majority of 179 seats, holding 418 seats to the Tories’ 165.
You can only imagine the joy and relief that permeated the progressive half of the country the following day. One image stood out in so many people’s minds. At about 4.00 am, a particularly loathed Cabinet Minister called Michael Portillo, whose seat was regarded as about as safe as they come, lost. The bitter look on that hated face was THE moment. (Note — since his exit from Parliament, Portillo has mellowed, and is now a fairly well-liked media personality.)
And thus was born a meme. The question excited progressives kept asking each other was, “Were you still up for Portillo?” And that has now gone down in the political lexicon as “a Portillo moment”.
It feels to me like that is where we stand today. A despised right winger in power. The polls consistently showing a big victory, but progressives not daring to believe it.
And so, I can but hope that tomorrow, across the nation, we will see another “Portillo moment”, with progressives turning to each other and asking, “Were you still up for Lindsey?”