An election like no other - and almost every other

Jamie Owen and David Cornock

Even our ties are impartial....Jamie Owen and David Cornock broadcasting live on the BBC Wales Election 2015 tour in Cardiff

By David Cornock
BBC Wales Parliamentary correspondent

It's almost time to return the hi-vis jacket and hard hat to the props department.

The 2015 general election campaign is virtually over (unless we have to do it all again in a few months). The polls suggest little has changed despite six weeks of frantic campaigning and constant media coverage.

The UK leaders' debates have given Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood the sort of UK-wide profile her predecessors could only dream of. You could almost be forgiven for forgetting that neither she nor Nicola Sturgeon is actually a candidate in this election.

The Welsh leaders' debates featured another leader who isn't a candidate, Kirsty Williams. The line-up of the debates means few viewers in Wales will have seen many Lib Dem or Plaid candidates beyond those standing in their own constituencies. (Pub quiz question: can you name the deputy leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats?)

Five years ago, eyebrows were raised as the Conservatives erected campaign posters in Wales on issues that are the responsibility of the Welsh government.

In 2015, all political parties have decided to reflect the views of voters and talk (and make pledges) about devolved issues they cannot deliver unless they are in power in Cardiff Bay.

Assembly elections are often dominated by noises off from Westminster, European elections are rarely decided by what MEPs actually do and council elections can be a referendum on the UK government of the day. Perhaps Westminster elections have now become like other elections in which the campaigns feature fierce debates on issues that are not directly decided by the poll.

I've spent the last six weeks living out of a suitcase travelling around Wales and acquiring the sort of hotel toiletries collection Alan Partridge would envy in his Travel Tavern days.

I'm now heading back to Westminster for the election and its aftermath. I may be some time.