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Election Odds: Boris and Ken skirmish for title of most-hard-done-by

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A day of little activity, some low grade complaining, and a big shift in the betting

The first big discovery of this election - it's the polls that are shifting the betting markets. Ken and Boris might as well have been entombed in ice for the last 24 hours, so inconspicuous have their movements been, yet the Betfair markets have been abuzz - Boris has shortened to [1.43], his shortest price yet, Ken has disappeared into outer space at [3.35].

The only event of any significance to have provoked this dramatic realignment has been the publication of a new poll, conducted by online pollsters YouGov on behalf of the Evening Standard, and which gives Boris Johnson a 13-point lead over Ken Livingstone, his biggest yet.

But punter beware - polls do not always paint the most dependable vision of the future. They have been shown to be routinely flawed to the point of absurdity in the US election, while a poll conducted for the Guardian just last week showed the mayoral candidates separated by a single percentage point. The Evening Standard poll during the same period showed the gap at 11 per cent.

Not surprisingly, Mayor Livingstone has no time for these silly calculations, and his campaign office announced it was lauching an official complaint against YouGov, accusing them of "flawed methodology" and misleading the public. YouGov said it would defend itself against any complaints.

In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, however, Boris Johnson claimed that he, and not Ken, was the real victim of outrageous political manoeuvering in this election. He claimed his computers were hacked last week and his email penetrated. "They brought the system down for three hours," he said. "The technicians said whoever did it was determined to get to us."

He also accused his opponents of "fighting dirty" to cling on to power. "They are doing blatant misrepresentations of our position, absolutely ruthlessly going around lying about what we are offering. They are literally going round houses knocking on the door and lying."

A spokesman for the Livingstone campaign laconically responded, "Boris Johnson uniquely claims it is a smear to quote what he actually said."

Ken, on the other hand, seemed to be preparing for battle at last. "Boris is the most formidable opponent I've faced," he said, before relaxing back on his chaise longue and enjoying a grape. "The only real thing he's ever managed is a small Right-wing magazine, where the most difficult decision was where to take the staff for lunch."