General election takes place in the world's one true democracy

The vote has now been cast, the polls are closed and North Korea's version of John Snow is almost certainly set to move his swingometer. Political pundits are poised to pick up the results. It is election time in the DPRK.

Needless to say there is one candidate per seat so the result it a foregone conclusion. That said The nation truly has a one man, one vote system and the one man of course is the Dear Leader Kim Jong-Il.

The only real item of interest in what is of course a rubber stamp exercise is whether The Dear Leader's third son Kin Jong-Un actually appears on the ballot. This may confirm rumours that he is favoured to succeed his father.

According to ITAR-Tass (not exactly a first choice news source for the Poor Mouth) thousands of residents of the capital Pyongyang dressed in festived clothes stood in lines to cast their vote (turn out last time was reportedly 99.9%.... hmmm).

In theory, each voter has the right to express his or her discontent with the candidacy of a would-be representative and cross out the name in the ballot, but no such cases are known in practice here.North Korean mass media claim that this is the most democratic form of a direct voting by secret ballot.

At the end of the voting procedure, each voter is expected to stop by the portraits of the country's leader Kim Jong Il and his father Kim Il Sung, the founder of the Korean socialist state, and to make several bows to them.

I'm sure the Korean Friendship Association and its Juche brown nosers like Alejandro Cao de Benos de Les y Pérez and Dermot (a sterling fellow and in no way a f**kwit) are probably enraptured.... Hiho

Marginal MPs say “Go”

Err, perhaps that should read "MPs in Labour marginals say Go".....According to today’s Guardian Labour MPs in some marginal seats would support a decision to go for a snap autumn poll, and a surprisingly large number believe he should now take the plunge. The Guardian contacted more than 30 Labour MPs in marginal constituencies yesterday and found support for an early poll from those in the Pennines, Oxford, the West Midlands, the south-west, Edinburgh and the south coast. Mr Brown has been polling in marginals and has a clear and sustained lead. Nigel Griffiths, who represents Edinburgh South with a majority of just 405, said: "He should go for it. If we have the election now, my majority will go up from 400 to 3,000. It is a gamble, but he should take it."

Other figures such as Stephen Ladyman, chairman of the south-east group of Labour MPs, have suggested that they have a slight preference to wait until May, but they accept Mr Brown cannot be sure his standing would be so high in six months.

There has been a run of polls over the summer which indicate that Labour has a clear lead over the Tories. A poll in today’s Sun is no different - itgives Labour with an eight point lead. The Sun reports that Labour's lead rose to 17 points in the unlikely event of Mr Brown conceding a referendum on the EU's draft treaty. (Hmm I think pigs will fly on that one)

For what my view is worth, the course is clear: if the coffers can stand it then go to the country. Although our elections are not presidential (we vote for the party, not fpr a Prime Minister) , an election victory would give Brown a clear mandate in the eyes of the electorate.