Iraq Overshadows Brit Elections

Blair's Party Expected To Win, But Not By As Much As In 1997, 2001

(CBS/AP)  Blair has said that if Labour wins he would serve a full third term but not run for a fourth. Observers have speculated, however, that he could hand power to his Treasury Chief Gordon Brown midterm if he is badly weakened in the election.

Turnout in the race could be crucial. The last general election in 2001 saw a turnout of 59 percent — the lowest since troops returned in 1918 at the end of World War I.

This year's brief but hard-hitting campaign has exposed the depth of Britons' anger at the prime minister, whose formidable political skills once charmed voters who saw him as a fresh face of change after 18 years of Tory government in the 1980s and '90s.

Blair's decision to commit the country to war in Iraq and his centrist stance on domestic issues — including plans to partly privatize some public services — have infuriated many within his own party.

But he has benefited from the Conservatives' even greater unpopularity, and a perception that the opposition is less capable of handling the economy.

"It's a Labour-despite-everything victory," predicted Philip Cowley, a political analyst at Nottingham University.

Even more damaging for Blair, Cowley said, "This time they will win despite him."