THREE years ago Conservative Party central office began its attempts to find a candidate for Hyndburn, seen as a ‘classic marginal seat’, with a 6.9 per cent swing needed by the Tories.

But the chosen candidate to run in the seat ranked 138 on the Conservatives’ wish list was only announced last month. Hyndburn was the last of 650 constituencies to put forward a Tory.

The delay, which infuriated Tory supporters across the country, came about because of a stand-off in the mould of the ‘Turnip Taliban’ saga, where local activists battled with central office bosses over the selection of a candidate in Norfolk.

Things came to a head with a walkout at the selection meeting on March 13, from where candidate Karen Buckley was eventually chosen. A section of the local association wanted to see Hyndburn council leader Peter Britcliffe – who had been rejected from the approved list after an interview – put forward.

Regional Tory staff took over management of the local association, stripping Hyndburn Conservatives of their power, to draw up a shortlist. Three members of the local party had resigned from the executive committee.

Up until the deadline there were strong rumours of an ‘independent Conservative’ candidate.

Coun Britcliffe would not comment on the row and insists he backs Mrs Buckley, adding: “Obviously I was disappointed, but I’m not going to spend my time arguing about it.’’ As a result of the wrangling Mrs Buckley, a lawyer and Fylde councillor, had just over two weeks to find her feet in the constituency before the General Election was called.

“I have a short time to get out and get known, and I am keeping positive,” she says “There’s no point having regrets about not being selected earlier. There’s nothing I can do about it.”

Pundits are expecting a tight two-horse race between the Tories and Labour, which has a notional majority of 5,504.

Professor David Denver, an elections specialist at Lancaster University, said: “With both the big parties there has been a danger of the leadership riding roughshod over locals – and in my view it’s a big mistake. Obviously most people think they are voting for David Cameron or Gordon Brown, but in a marginal seat this matters.”

Mrs Buckley, whose mother was born in Accrington, has also had to contend with attacks from Labour’s candidate Graham Jones, a Peel ward councilor chosen to replace former MP Greg Pope, because she is not from the area.

“The key issue is that this is the 40th most deprived borough in the country,” Coun Jones said in the Abbey Street office he has inherited from Mr Pope.

“People want a local candidate, they do not want an outsider. Voters want to see someone with a connection to the area, who has lived here.”

But Mrs Buckley insisted: “For some people being local is very important and I understand that, they will decide how important it is when they come to vote.”’ Conservative support is expected to be strongest in Haslingden, Rishton and Great Harwood, and turnout will be key in Accrington, where Labour is strong.

Hyndburn is traditionally a ‘Labour-inclined’ area but it has been a battleground since it was created in 1983 from parts of the old Accrington and Clitheroe seats.

That year votes from surrounding villages helped the Conservatives win power, by just 21 votes – East Lancashire’s smallest ever majority.

After another win for the Tories in 1987, Mr Pope won the seat back for Labour in 1992, and his majority peaked at 11,500 in the 1997 election.

But the Labour majority has been eaten into in the last two elections, and in 2000 the Conservatives took control of the council, although it briefly changed hands in 2002.

Voters have been denied the prospect of a General Election battle between Couns Jones and Britcliffe but the two have one of the most bitter town hall rivalries in Lancashire.

Grass roots activists say housing, particularly in Hyndburn, is a key issue in the constituency, with the Labour government and Tory council both trying to claim credit for the multimillion pound Housing Market Renewal scheme which is playing a key role in attempts to regenerate run-down areas.

A total of nine candidates are lining up on the ballot paper, including the Lib Dems, UKIP, the Green Party and the BNP.

English Democrats candidate Chris Reid has been a vocal campaigner, criticising the main parties for not discussing the proposed Pennine Reach bus lane among other issues.

Another prominent candidate has been the Rev Kevin Logan, a former vicar standing for the Christian People’s Alliance, whose purple ‘get cross, vote Logan’, posters have sprung up all around Hyndburn.

“We are getting good support in Accrington and Great Harwood, where I have served as a vicar,” he said.

His campaign has included towing a rusty trailer around town to demonstrate ‘broken Britain’, and the loss of family values.

“There has been tremendous support. All we have got to do now is win the vote.”