Original sentence: The result of the election — held on May 4 — was a foregone conclusion: Dobson, who it was alleged, had been pressured into running by the party leadership, unsuccessfully based his campaign on claims that Livingstone was an egomaniac, and the Conservatives remained becalmed after their catastrophic national defeat in 1997
Edited sentence: The result of the election — held on May 4 — was a foregone conclusion: Dobson, who it was alleged, had been pressured into running by the party leadership, foolishly based his campaign on claims that Livingstone was an egomaniac, and the Conservatives remained becalmed after their catastrophic national defeat in 1997