Over at Harry’s Place and elsewhere on the left-wing blogosphere they are hyperventilating about the appointment of Munira Mirza, who has been hired by Boris to be his race relations adviser, to the consternation of many on both the left and the right. Some on the left claimed she was a member or a former member of the RCP sect. As did some on the right.

So Guido asked Munira -

She quickly pointed out to Guido “I think the RCP was disbanded while I was still at school. I wasn’t a member.” Doh!

Guido has just got off the phone with Joe Derrett, who works in the Mayor’s press office – for now – he has for some years handled press requests for interviews with the Mayor. Guido asked him if he was “surprised to still have a job?” “Why?” he said defensively. “Aren’t you the former London Regional Labour Party Press Officer?” “Errr, I’ve got to go to a meeting.” he claimed. Somehow Guido suspects Joe won’t be in tune with the new order at City Hall for long…

It got off to a good start with the police making good on his tough crime stance promise – shooting a drunk gun toting lawyer. However this banning of drink on public transport* has Guido worried (for one reason and another). Will hip-flasks be confiscated?

Will we be able to travel intoxicated, will one be able travel with bottles of booze? What are the mechanics of this? Guido may have to resort to Cameroon style transport arrangements in London – cycling one-handed while swigging from a jug of Pimms. Oh, hold on…

The thing is Boris, if you go to Beijing to hob-nob with Tibet’s oppressors (and don’t send the right signals) as well as getting all authoritarian in your first week with the G&T swilling classes on the long march to Zone 6, we will remember your treachery come 2012. This may be the most rapid disillusionment with a politician ever…

*Pretty sure that Guido was served alcohol on public river transport between Westminster and Canary Wharf one evening. It was pretty civilised for public transport. Is that to be banned?

Guido’s old friend Harry Phibbs can claim to be the first person to promote the idea of Mayor Boris Johnson. The Hammersmith councillor and Evening Standard diarist first posited Boris running in January 2007 on the Social Affairs Unit’s blog.

Guido thought it an inspired idea and posted a comment in reply:

For what it was worth Guido then did everything in his power to encourage Boris to run. Guido made the succint case for Boris ten days before Tory nominations for Mayor closed. Here was the argument for Boris winning on psephological grounds. Guido’s July 2007 poll that showed 83% of Guido’s readers wanted Boris to run was unscientific but encouraging for him.

It was Guido who set up the “I’m Backing Boris” Facebook group which gained over a thousand supporters in the days before he announced he was running – and was actually taken over by the Boris campaign team when he formally announced he was running.

“How much influence do bloggers and the internet have in politics?” is a question Guido is often asked. My reply is that we only have influence over politicians, journalists and thus the climate of ideas. We don’t have any influence over the voting general public except through that opinion leading influence. Guido set out last July to encourage one political journalist to seize the moment, if Guido succeeded in that objective, his mission was accomplished.

Some co-conspirators have suggested that Guido compromised his USP and libertarian principles in backing a politician’s bid for power – the first time this blog has endorsed a politician. Well Guido has hated Ken Livingstone’s brand of municipal socialism for decades, at one point it looked possible the Tories would again choose Steve Norris to lose to Ken again – that was not a prospect Guido welcomed. Boris has admirable libertarian-conservative instincts and is a refreshingly direct politician who speaks his mind. In a personal note to Guido after he won the Conservative nomination, Boris indicated that the admiration is mutual. So with an opportunity to encourage someone like-minded to lead London, it would have been churlish to remain aloof from the affray.

Boris as mayor will also hopefully provide Guido with lots of fun material…

Today will be the day where YouGov makes or breaks its reputation. YouGov alone is predicting victory for Boris – the rest of the major pollsters go for Ken by slim margins. Last night it looked to Guido like Ipsos-Mori were in CYA* mode, posting comments on PoliticalBetting.Com nuancing their position. Punters believe and trust YouGov…

Mori in the past have spun bad calls with “last minute surge” lines. Expect more of the same…

Mike Smithson has the whisper from a reliable source that YouGov’s last poll has Boris “leading Ken 44%-36% on first preferences. After second preferences that becomes 53% to 47%.”

Boris will win and nothing else will really matter tomorrow. Polly Toynbee and all the rest of the chattering classes will choke on their words. Labour will finally understand in their collective consciousness that they made a terrible choice in replacing the triple election-winning Tony with the triple election-avoiding* Gordon.

They will also know that if Boris can win London, Cameron can win Britain. Gordon is a loser…

*1994 avoids risking challenging Tony for the leadership. July 2007 engineers a coronation through menace and intimidation to avoid a challenge for the leadership. October 2007 funks calling a general election to obtain a personal mandate in the face of a resurgent Conservative Party.