They say a week is a long time in politics, so in the five years since the last general election, how have things changed?

It was in 2010 Conservative James Duddridge kept his seat in Rochford and Southend East – posting a healthy majority of 11,050 over Labour’s Kevin Bonavia.

To see how voters are reacting on the doorstep, I accompanied three of the candidates hoping to take the seat – Conservative James Duddridge, Ukip’s Floyd Waterworth and Labour’s Ian Gilbert, while they canvassed.

First up was Mr Waterworth. A very public dispute with another Ukip politician in Southend, James Moyies, had threatened to derail his campaign, but the Eastwood resident is determined to make his mark.

Meeting in Rochford’s Town Square, I got my first taste of meeting the electorate when a 27- year-old approached us to tell Mr Waterworth she was going to vote for his party.

Further along, Mr Waterworth was actually chased down the road by a middle-aged woman who was fed up with the benefits system.

He pinpointed parts of his party’s manifesto and related them to the issues people raised with him on the doorstep.

Ukip had a two-pronged approach to canvassing – firstly putting a leaflet through the door then posting a letter.

Mr Waterworth said posting a letter, signed by himself, was more personal than a leaflet.

Echo:

Labour's Ian Gilbert

It was a different approach when I went out with Labour, where Ian Gilbert, deputy leader of Southend Council, is looking to overturn the Tory majority in the general election.

This time I was taken around the Sutton Road area of Southend, and he had a group of activists to help him.

His approach was different – hehad a clipboardwith the electoral register and people’s voting habits.

Possibly, the most interesting thing to be revealed from this approach, was there was someone sharing actress Pamela Anderson’s name living in the area.

Mr Gilbert was happy to act as the orchestrator to the group’s work, telling them the surname of the resident at the door he assigned them to knock on.

When I asked why he wasn’t knocking, he explained if a potential voter struck up a conversation, he’d go and introduce himself. Mr Gilbert spoke about lighting problems to a women in a bathrobe, and speeding issues to another – perhaps showing the blurred boundaries between local and national politics in voters’ eyes.

Echo:

James Duddridge

Finally, I followed Mr Duddridge, who is bidding for a fourth term in office.

He turned up at the Echo offices in a vehicle boldy emblazoned with pictures of himself and several microphones on the top.

I was given an insight into another form of electioneering: the loud version. We drove around the seafront with Mr Duddridge shouting messages to the electorate from the car.

At the traffic lights, he even managed to strike up a conversation with two young men who responded with a thumbs up.

Another Tory voter approached us to say that he’d already voted for Mr Duddridge – via the post.

If nothing else, the car approach was loud and effective.

We got plenty of looks as we made our way to Thorpe Bay Broadway, where a huge team were being readied to leaflet the area – including Mr Duddridge’s wife and mother – for both the local and national elections.

The group had 20,000 leaflets to deliver that weekend and certainly had the manpower to carry it off.

A lot of the shopkeepers and residents we spoke to said they were going to vote for him.

My outings with all three were punctuated with amusing tales, with Ukip’s Robert Gage revealing he used a fly swatter to post a letter through someone’s door as there was a huge dog inside and Mr Waterworth’s dog-related tale of dropping all his leaflets when a hound barked at him.

A prankster put a false parking ticket on Mr Duddridge’s car while he was campaigning, causing a brief moment of panic.

What was also striking was the number of undecided voters in all three areas which shows the level of disaffection – a mood that seems to have grown since the expenses scandal of 2009.

In two days, the candidates will find out if their campaigning has been worth it.

- The other candidates for the Rochford and Southend East seat are Peter Gwizdala for the Lib Dems and Simon Cross for the Green Party.

 

What the people said on the doorstep

LIZA WHITE, 27, Warwick Drive Rochford, said: “I see Labour as just promises, they never keep their word.

“The Government wants to cut benefits for single mums, and I think that’s disgusting, and don’t even get me started on immigration.

That’s why I’m voting Ukip.

“They’re all really rich when you see politicians on TV, it’s all empty promises.”

CECIL SMITH, 93, Malting Villas Road, Rochford, said: “It’s all about getting rid of the Conservatives for me.

“The reason this country is in so much trouble goes back to when Margaret Thatcher was in charge and privitised everything and closed a lot of the industries.

“I’ve already voted Ukip by postal vote. This county needs a change.”

PAT BAKER, 75, Anchor Lane, Canewden, said: “I was a bit disappointed by the Ukip prospective MP chap, he didn’t have much to say. But he’s the first politician I’ve seen, and I haven’t seen any where I live in Canewden.

“I haven’t made up my mind on who I’m going to vote for yet.”

SHERRY ANDREA, 32, Sycamore Grove, Southend, said: “I haven’t decided who I will vote for yet, but the Labour guy came across well.

“I’ve got a lot of issues with the road and lighting and he was happy to speak to me.

“I’ve got a lot of leaflets, so I’ll have to look through them all.”

JUNE HO, 40, Sycamore Drive, Southend, said: “I have never voted before, and I’m really unsure about who to vote for this time.

“It seems politicians just say the same things every election, so I’m undecided.

“I think I will be undecided right up to polling day.”

MATT GILBERT, 45, Sycamore Drive, Southend, said: I thought Ian was a pretty sincere, local guy, and sounded like he knows what he’s talking about.

“I’ve always voted Blue as I don’t really share the views of Labour nationally.

“I did think about voting Ukip, but if the results as close as they say they are, it could put Labour in. There’s a lot of variables this time around.”

STEVE BENNETT, 53, from Leigh, said: “I don’t know who I’m going to vote for at the moment. I’m a bit confused as to what they’re all saying – it seems all very similar whatever the political party.

ANDREW ADAMS, owner of Loom Carpets and Home, Thorpe Bay, said: “I’m going to vote Conservative as their policies have helped small businesses like ours.

“In a personal capacity, I think James Duddridge has done a good job here.

“We see him at the school at parents’ evenings and he seems very down to earth.”

DAVID WYLES, 79, The Broadway, Thorpe Bay, said: “I’m going to vote Conservative because I think that they’re the lesser of the three evils.

“They inherited enormous debt and didn’t panic.

“Labour can’t be trusted with finances.

“I did consider voting Ukip as I believe we should be governed by our own laws, by and large.”