Elections always have missteps, but the Tories have had more than their fair share in a campaign that arguably needed to be watertight to give them any chance of victory.
Even the start was a shocker. At the moment Rishi Sunak needed to look in command of his country, he chose to stand in the pouring rain while telling the nation he was calling an election.
Not only that, he persevered while being drowned out by a loudspeaker blaring the soundtrack to Labour’s 1997 landslide win, the D:Ream pop hit Things Can Only Get Better.
Then, against his better judgment, the prime minister made an early exit from commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day to pre-record an election interview with ITV.
It offended many of the voters he wanted to appeal to and attracted criticism that he showed little regard for the battles fought by the generations before him.
But it’s what was happening just before Sunak announced when Brits would head to the polls that would plague large parts of his campaign.
Allegations some Conservative candidates and staffers placed bets on what date the general election would be held on ahead of Sunak’s announcement are now the subject of a police probe as well as a separate independent investigation.
It’s drawn attention away from actual policy debate in the final weeks of campaigning and hampered the party’s chances of closing Labour’s commanding 20-point lead.
What makes it so damaging for the Tories, is that it feeds into the perception they’re arrogant, out-of-touch and haven’t learnt anything since Boris Johnson’s “Partygate” during the pandemic.
It cuts to the heart of Tory party weakness – and suggests there’s one rule for them and another for the rest of the country. Â