With nominations for the 650 constituencies now closed, it has been confirmed that a record 4,149 candidates are standing at this general election - equivalent to 6.4 candidates per seat across the UK.
1987 was probably the last time when the average constituency in England saw a three-way fight (alongside (four-way contests in Scotland and Wales).
In 1992 we then saw the emergence of hundreds of extra candidates from the Green Party and the Natural Law Party, whilst 1997 then saw the intervention of the Referendum Party, which stood in the vast majority of seats.
The total dipped in 2001, but has since continued to rise, arriving at that figure of 4,149 for this year's general election.
According to the Press Association, four minor parties are fighting more than 100 constituencies, which are:
- UKIP - 557
- BNP - 337
- Green - 334
- English Democrats - 106
There are more than 100 other minor parties putting up candidates, with more than 300 individuals standing as Independents as well.
All of these will add confusion to the electoral mix, doubtless with the frontrunners in each seat pushing the message that "X can't win here" and that "voting Y will let in Z".
Furthermore, I suspect a preponderance of "others" will further reduce the overall national percentage voteshare that either the Conservatives or Labour would need to attain in order to win a majority nationally.
By way of comparison, here are the total numbers of candidates who have stood at the last few general elections (according to the Times Guide ot the House of Commons) :
- 1987 - 2,325
- 1992 - 2,948
- 1997 - 3,724
- 2001 - 3,133
- 2005 - 3,546
- 2010 - 4,149
