Alexandra Palace count suffers power cut as Boris Johnson leads London mayor pollsReported by Metro.co.uk on Friday, 4 May 2012 (on May 4, 2012)
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*Boris Johnson looks to be on course to win a second term as London mayor, despite the Conservatives suffering significant losses in nationwide local elections - but the count has been held up by a power cut at Alexandra Palace.*
Boris Johnson said he was 'optimistic' about his chances in the London Mayoral Election (Picture: PA)
Results of the capital's polling are not due until later this evening, with most predictions suggesting 6pm at the earliest.
Incumbent Mr Johnson has been shown to hold a significant lead over his closest rival, Labour candidate Ken Livingstone, with a YouGov poll released on the eve of the election giving the Tory candidate a six-point margin, 53 per cent to 47.
It had been suggested the London mayoral result announcement could be held up by an unexpected loss of power at Ally Pally, where Haringey Council's count is based.
An electronic counting system used by the council had to be halted and started again following a loss of electricity shortly before 8am.
However, a statement from the palace explained: 'The mayoral election count at Alexandra Palace aims to announce the results on time.
'There was a statutory safety systems test at Ally Pally early this morning, as a consequence of which there was a temporary power cut for 16 minutes at 7.52am.
'This in turn meant that the electronic counting system had to be rebooted.
'During the down time the contingency plan was brought into action and ballot papers, which would normally be done at a later point of the schedule, were organised which means the result should be delivered on time as planned.
'We have all worked together to ensure minimum impact to the schedule due to the brief interruption earlier this morning. The cause of the power cut is being investigated.'
The YouGov survey that gave Mr Johnson a six-point lead suggests around 20 per cent of Labour voters may switch loyalties and vote for Tory candidate Mr Johnson to remain in office.
And YouGov president Peter Kellner suggested their vote would be crucial to the end result: 'If all 200,000 stayed loyal to Ken he'd be back as mayor.
'It really is an anti-Ken vote that will result in Labour London re-electing a Tory Mayor,' he added to the Evening Standard.
Yesterday, after casting his own vote at a polling station in Islington, Mr Johnson said he was 'optimistic' of remaining in office but admitted it would be 'very close'.
Ken Livingstone was behind in a poll on the eve of the election (Picture: PA)
His manifesto had included plans to cut council tax and boost apprenticeships, while Mr Livingstone had vowed to deal with issues relating to the cost of living and public transport in the capital.
Others standing in the election included Lib Dem candidate Brian Paddick, Green Party candidate Jenny Jones, UKIP's Lawrence Webb, Carlos Cortiglia from the British National Party and independent candidate Siobhan Benita.
Early vote counting put Ms Jones in third behind the two main parties, with Ms Benita fourth and Mr Paddick fifth, on first preferences.
Voting has also taken place to elect the 25 members of the London Assembly.
Although the result is not expected until later on Friday evening, a Tory victory would be seen as a major boost for David Cameron after the Conservatives suffered heavy losses elsewhere.
Labour seized back control of a number of key councils including Southampton, Birmingham, Plymouth, Reading and Harlow, while Mr Cameron also saw his local constituencies of Witney Central, Witney East and Chipping Norton fall to Labour.
And there was another blow for the prime minister after major cities across the country including Birmingham and Manchester rejected the idea of having elected mayors - a proposal which had had his support.
PICTURES: Voting in the London Mayoral and local elections
Links:  Full news story
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