Dr Evan Harris stood on the podium five years ago and romped home with a 7,683-seat majority. A safe seat for the Big Pharma front man and useful to them to help peddle their potions. These are all tested on animals, passed as ‘safe’ and often go on to do people harm or lead to more drugs which are tested on animals and so on. At around 4.00am yesterday morning following a number of tense recounts of the Oxford West votes, Evan Harris took the platform for the result along with Keith Mann but was rather less buoyant than previously. Let us not forget we don’t ask for votes for the Animal Protection Party instead we ask for voters to tick any box other than the target, for example Evan Harris. And they did, wiping out his majority!

Let us also remember that this defender of great evil has been prominent in inciting the savagery inflicted on our companions inside the windowless chambers of Oxford University. Remember Tipu Aziz brain damaging little Felix and the others for TV? Harris and Aziz marched with placards through the streets of Oxford alongside the vivisectors and assorted chums demanding more of this terrible, misguided exploitation of our fellow earthlings! How much of human society really wants more animals to be used in this way? We believe that most people have evolved beyond this and view children in a similar way to animals and as Evan Harris hasn’t we joined up some dots for his constituents and forged allies to achieve our stated aim.

Harris couldn’t hold back from moaning to the audience during his losers’ speech of the “dirty” nature of the Animal Protection Party campaign and told of his hopes that this approach wouldn’t become a regular feature of British politics. It only added insult to his injury when we reiterated that this is exactly what we intend to do!

“Science lost one of its strongest parliamentary supporters with the surprise defeat of Evan Harris, Professor David Nutt, who resigned as chairman of the Government's drugs advisory committee, said that it was a sad day for science and the Government." The Independent

To further strengthen this important step forward we have established connections with people who once might have had less respect for our kind of thinking than they now do. Many of who have expressed their admiration for our efforts, one Oxford candidate, a Green, was big enough to state that he believed that we had a greater case for standing than he did. And it’s perhaps worth noting that the personable Nicola Blackwood, the Conservative who has replaced Evan Harris, is against repealing the Hunting Act. Harris however voted very strongly against the ban. What a gem!

Vauxhall proved a difficult territory to infiltrate despite the inspired efforts of Jim and the team. Here we focused on Hoey’s ties to hunting and her constituency failings but other issues won the day there. We none the less positively communicated with a great deal of people.

In Hampshire we exposed the sickening brutality they call ‘essential medical research’ killing 70,000 animals a year in Wickham Laboratories to test Botox and Sarah Coats pulled 255 rural votes, beating the Independent candidate Graham Quar, Wickham Laboratories solicitor.

It’s another no-go area for the progressive campaigner but we went to Huntingdon, one of the Tory's safest seats. Jonathan Djanogly suffered a surprise 2,000 cut to his majority and Carrie Holliman was given 181 of the votes and a lot of support from people who were pleased that we directly challenged the Conservative on both HLS and his excessive expenses.

We have laid the foundations for the future. This was our first time out and no doubt mistakes were made. However, we will learn from them so that we can be even more effective in the future. There will always be those who will work obsessively to undermine initiative, but they are weak and are swimming against the tide. Everyone else can feel proud of what we have achieved here. We know we are.

Keith on Radio Oxford before the count:

 http://www.fromdusktildawn.org.uk/News/2010/april/keith_talks_to_oxford_radio.html

Oxford Mail after the count:

 http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/general_election_2010/oxwest/8152627.ELECTION__Conservative_topples_Lib_Dem_Harris/

The Times Online. A terrible night for Science:

 http://timesonline.typepad.com/science/2010/05/election-2010-a-terrible-night-for-science.html

The Independent:

Science lost one of its strongest parliamentary supporters with the surprise defeat of Evan Harris, Professor David Nutt, who resigned as chairman of the Government's drugs advisory committee, said that it was a sad day for science and the Government

 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/time-for-a-rethink-for-science-lobby-1968210.html