Duncan O'Leary
Many of us spent August 2004 agonising over the US presidential election - and anyone who didn't will have had some trouble avoiding the coverage of it. With this in mind, I posted my ballot for our own election and set off for New York wondering whether the prospect of a third-term in office for New Labour would cause any ripples on the other side of the Atlantic.
As it turns out, the message isn't quite as simple as "we don't care", it's more that New Yorkers, at least, can't see what all the fuss is about.
In 2004, both Britons and Americans saw a fundamental choice between Bush and Kerry, albeit for different reasons in many cases. A year later, it seems that the other half of the special relationship has opted out of front-page coverage (a recent story made page 9 of the New York Times) and full-scale paranoia for a couple of reasons.
The first, fairly predictable, reason is that they just love Tony. "Tony Blair's a great leader," says Chad, a final year medical student - and Bush enthusiast - when I bring up our election.
The second reason is that most New Yorkers don't know who he's up against. Though most Americans view the election through the prism of their own politics (they either support or oppose Tony Blair, not the Labour party), general awareness of the two opposition leaders is noticeably low. Michael Howard is more often a footnote than a feature of the coverage, whilst Charles Kennedy and the Lib Dems are mentioned only in the context of Iraq.
Amid all of this, the general perception is not just that that Blair will be returned to office but also why shouldn't he be?
Perhaps the most striking thing about all this is the odd symmetry with the prime minister's old ally Bill Clinton. Whilst in the US Clinton's charm and astute politics were damaged by questions about his integrity, he retains something nearing iconic status with voters across the spectrum in the UK. Two-and-a-half years after his show-stopping appearance at the Labour party conference, Clinton was beamed across to rally the party faithful once again last week. Perhaps it will be Tony returning the compliment for Hillary in four years' time.
