Ed Miliband says he is feeling optimistic about being prime minister by the end of this week.
The Labour leader revealed his thoughts about his chances on the eve of the final day of campaigning which he will be spending in the north of England before casting his vote in his Doncaster constituency on polling day.
Opinion polls suggest Labour and the Conservatives are neck and neck, making it too close to call who will be in Downing Street after the election.
A hung parliament is the most likely outcome, but Miliband has repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether he would still seek to form a centre-left bloc to govern even if Labour is not the largest party. He has ruled out dealing with the Scottish National party and Ukip but not the Lib Dems or other minor parties such as the Democratic Unionist party, Plaid Cymru or the Greens.
Asked why he had not broken through in the polls yet, he told ITV: “Many people are still making up their minds at this election and my message to all those undecided voters is: you can have another five years of a prime minister who’ll put the rich and powerful first in our country, or, if I’m prime minister, I’ll put working people first.
“That is about rewarding hard work, that is about ensuring our young people have a better life than their parents and it is also about rescuing our National Health Service, which needs rescuing from David Cameron.”
Asked if he really thought he was going to be prime minister, he said: “I’m optimistic but it will be in the hands of the people come tomorrow and I know the people will make the right judgment.
“And, I hope people make a judgment on the basis of what’s best for them and their family because I’m not just asking people to vote Labour, I’m asking people to vote to put their family first in this election.
“I think on the ballot paper is the National Health Service, tax credits and child benefits, family finances, our young people and that’s why I ask people to vote Labour.”
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