Police Probes After Battle For Bradford West

Although the election is over in Bradford West, West Yorkshire Police have still got work to do with multiple investigations into what is being described as the wildest election contest in the country.

Alleged smearing, online trolling, assault and a possible infringement of election law are all being investigated by police after the bitter election battle between Respect's George Galloway and Labour's Naz Shah.

Mr Galloway won a 2012 by-election by more than 10,000 votes, in a Yorkshire seat Labour had held since 1974.

The firebrand veteran held nothing back in the campaign, taking to the streets in the Respect Party's battle bus with a megaphone.

His main rival was Naz Shah, a newcomer with no political experience but an incredible personal story.

When she was selected late in the campaign, Ms Shah told press how she was sent to Pakistan to escape her mother's abusive partner.

She was forced into marriage at the age of 15, she says, and had to bring up her two sisters back in Britain when her mother was jailed for murdering her partner.

Naz Shah's story set the election race on fire in Bradford West, drawing huge amounts of interest from local and national media.

What followed was a campaign beset with allegations of smears on both sides, abuse online and two cases of alleged assault.

Ms Shah accused her rival of being an absentee MP, who did not attend Parliament enough to properly represent the constituency.

Mr Galloway responded by questioning her account of the forced marriage, alleging she was 16 and a half when the incident took place.

One voter in the city told Sky News he felt the campaign had been "distasteful".

"A lot of dirty linen has been aired which didn't need to be," he said.

Even on polling night, Mr Galloway was reported to police for allegedly breaking election laws with a tweet about exit polls whille polls were still open.

In the end, despite such a bitter contest, Ms Shah won for Labour by more than 11,000 votes, a margin few would have predicted.

Mr Galloway told Sky News he would run for London Mayor if he lost the election in Bradford West.

Both Mr Galloway and Ms Shah have strenuously denied any wrongdoing during the campaign.