Both Iain Dale (indecent haste to call a by-election) and Guido (Labour using a condolence book for Gwyneth Dunwoody to harvest email addresses) have both been examining Gordon Brown's effort to keep hold of the seat of Crewe and Nantwich when the by-election is fought on 22nd May.
Also on the case is UK Polling Report's Anthony Wells. Anthony writes that the Tories should be able to win the seat if current opinion polls are accurate.
Within his UKPR piece he notes that the LibDem candidate has had to resign. This, apparently, is their normal practice for by-elections. The theory is that a person deemed right to fight a seat the party is unlikely to win in a General Election might be a different person from who the party would want to represent it when the seat is being fought as a by-election with all of the associated national publicity.
What do you think of the Conservatives adopting the same rule?
By all accounts our already selected candidate - Edward Timpson - is performing well (including, as the photo suggests, campaigning on the hot issue of post office closures). He lives in the area, although just outside of the constituency, and has been campaigning effectively since being selected. But is there a case in future (not for this contest) for local party members to be invited to reconsider their decision in the event of a by-election. We emphasise the need for "local party members" to keep the final say. What do readers think?