Source: Pink News, The Age
Conservative Boris Johnson is the new Mayor of London.

Gay Liberal Democrat candidate Brian Paddick came third. Paddick has seen the Lib Dem share of the vote slashed.

Ken Livingstone, the first Mayor of London, well-known for his support for gay rights, came second.

Johnson's victory in London was part of a significant swing that had Conservative Party activists celebrating after making significant gains in yesterday's local council elections in England and Wales.

They won a projected 44% of the national vote. The Lib Dems, at 25%, beat Labour, with 24%, into third place.

"It's clear to me that this has been a disappointing night, indeed a bad night for Labour," said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. The decision to abolish the 10p rate of tax is being cited by government ministers as a doorstep issue that harmed their core vote.

Turnout was 45%, up from 37% in 2004 with a 14% rise in the Tory vote -- a swing that some attribute to the campaign masterminded by an Australian tactician.

Drawing an enormous circle around the capital, resources were thrown by Johnson's campaign into the outer boroughs, areas that had shown previously in voting data to have low voter turnouts but to be home to swinging voters leaning towards the Conservatives. In some areas, the strategy brought them out in almost three times the numbers seen last time around, The Age reports.

In pubs and cafes over the weekend, the mayoral result was not only the topic of conversation but appeared to be almost unreal for Londoners: for the first time in 30 years, a Tory celebrity MP had not only managed to oust Labour but also to beat Ken Livingstone, who had held the mayoral reins for two terms.

Only a few months ago, he was seen as nigh on unbeatable, polling around 10 points better than Labour nationally. In the end, the margin of his defeat was decisive, The Age reports.

Johnson beat Livingstone by 1,168,738 (53.2%) to 1,028,966 (46.8%) after second-preference votes were counted, Pink News reports.

The far right British National Party has won a seat on the London Assembly. Their mayoral candidate Richard Barnbrook received 69,710 votes in the Mayoral election.

He will join a handful of openly gay London Assembly members.

BNP spokesman Simon Darby told the Press Association: "I feel absolutely ecstatic.

"We've witnessed the first major politician elected not for telling lies but for telling the truth."

Mr Barnbrook who directed a gay erotic film in his youth was elected alongside a number of other London "list" assembly members.

He joins gay Conservative former Hackney councillor Andrew Boff , Victoria Borwick, Gareth Bacon. Labour former Deputy Mayor Nicky Gavron, Murad Qureshi. Liberal Democrat Mike Tuffrey, Dee Doocey, Caroline Pidgeon and gay Green Darren Johnson.

The gay Conservative Brian Coleman was re-elected to the Barnet & Camden constituency.

Australia's The Age reports that Johnson's victory was masterminded by conservative Australian political tactician Lynton Crosby.

He masterminded a strategy that's been dubbed the "doughnut" strategy -- a relentless, circular onslaught on the city of London that delivered victory and the coveted mayoral chains to the Tory candidate.

Crosby borrowed from his success with former Australian prime minister John Howard and targeted the middle-class, aspirational -- but swinging -- voter and focused on the bread-and-butter issues of transport, the cost of living and personal safety, The Age reports.

Crosby focused the campaign's considerable resources on increasing turnout.

But, just as he has done in Australia, Crosby did not forget the core conservative constituency. Enormous attention was paid to the blue-ribbon Tory seats to ensure high turnout in a poll where voting is not compulsory.

Brought in at the very end of last year, the mysterious Mr Crosby -- "you know I don't do interviews" he responded to an email from The Age -- reportedly established a punishing schedule for his 40-or-so workers, starting early, finishing late and demanding utter discipline seven days a week. Money -- and there was a lot of it -- was targeted carefully and strategically, while two highly experienced PR specialists (one a former councillor) were drafted to vet Mr Johnson's interviews and to keep him on message.

One insider noted in a Sunday newspaper: "Lynton stopped Boris being Boris ... and it worked."

Full article: Boris Johnson elected Mayor of London | Pink News
Relentless onslaught on London led to Tory victory | The Age
BNP wins London Assembly seat, joining a handful of openly gay members | Pink News
Tories soar to 44% in local elections | Pink News