British Prime Minister Tony Blair has announced May 5th as the date for the next British general election.
Mr Blair delayed the long-expected announcement by a day due to the death of Pope John Paul II, but visited the British queen this morning to seek symbolic permission for the dissolution of parliament.
Public anger over the Iraq war and general disillusionment with Labour could cut Mr Blair's parliamentary majority, and five newspaper polls published today showed his party has lost support to the Conservatives.
Surveys in the Financial Timesand Daily Mailput the Conservatives on 39 per cent, ahead of Labour on 34 per cent.
However, the electoral structure means that if this result were replicated on polling day, Labour would still be the biggest party in the lower house, albeit with a majority slashed from 161 seats to 27, the FTsaid.
The country's electoral map - which puts large numbers of constituencies in Labour's urban strongholds - means the Conservatives must win a larger share of the vote than Labour to take power.
Analysts say the Conservatives need a 10-point lead in the polls to win the election.
If he wins, Mr Blair would make history by becoming the first ever Labour prime minister to clinch a third consecutive term.
Official campaigning will start next week, although with the election date an open secret the race has been under way for months.