Sturgeon predicts watershed election in the Edinburgh rain

SNP leader in final rally to supporters before opening of the polls

The SNP is on the verge of making history and winning a UK general election in Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon told her party’s supporters.

Addressing around 300 people in wet central Edinburgh at a rally ahead of today’s vote, the First Minister said “the outlook for Scotland is sunny”.

She also predicted a “watershed election”, with opinion polls suggesting Labour is facing decimation in its historic heartlands.

Ms Sturgeon said: “We are now within touching distance, if we continue to work hard today and tomorrow, of doing something the SNP has never done in our history – winning a Westminster election.

“If we do that, then the voice of Scotland is going to be heard more loudly at Westminster than it has ever been heard before.”

The SNP leader, who will be in London tomorrow for VE Day commemorations, said it is up to the people to decide if she joins the Westminster power-brokering after the election.

All politicians will have a duty to respect the outcome and work together if no party gains a majority, she said.

She added: “I think this could be a watershed election, but we will have to wait and see how people vote.”

She said whether Scotland voted Yes or No in the referendum, and whether people have never voted SNP before, it is “an opportunity to come together as a country and vote to make our voice heard at Westminster”.

We are now within touching distance of doing something the SNP has never done in our history – winning a Westminster election

Picture: Getty Images. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon addressing yesterday’s rally in Edinburgh.