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Tory campaign chief Sir Lynton Crosby "pleaded" with Theresa May not to call a snap election, according to reports.

The mastermind of David Cameron 's surprise victory in 2015 reportedly thought the "risks were too great" to hold another ballot so soon.

But the Australian spin doctor - dubbed the 'Wizard of Oz' due to his successes over the years - loyally returned to London to join Mrs May's team after his advice was ignored.

He was joined by the likes of Jim Messina, a US data expert who propelled Barack Obama to the White House, and Tory grandee Lord Gilbert, who gave up a PR job in the City of London to return to Tory HQ after directing the party's successful 2015 campaign.

But Mrs May's attempt to increase her majority turned into a disaster for the Conservatives.

(Image: Rex Features)

They lost 13 seats and are now in desperate talks with the Democratic Unionist Party in an attempt to stay afloat as a minority government.

“Lynton pleaded 'do not do this, do not call the election'," a Tory source told the London Evening Standard . “He thought international politics were too unsettled, the risks were too great.”

The campaign reportedly began to fall apart when experienced electioneers like Sir Lynton were sidelined and Mrs May's co-chiefs of staff, Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, took the wheel.

One source said: “You had two talented policy people who knew nothing about campaigning taking all the decisions."

According to reports, big names in the cabinet - such as Chancellor Philip Hammond and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson - were kept out of the spotlight and the campaign focused entirely on robotic Mrs May.

(Image: REUTERS)

The Tories were so confident of a landslide that Mrs May's battle bus visited Labour strongholds like Stockport, where the party had a 10,000-vote majority, while key marginals were neglected.

Sir Lynton reportedly screeched "what the f*** is he doing there?" when the Foreign Secretary was finally deployed to Enfield, a remain-voting constituency in London, instead of travelling to the leave-backing South West.

Poor campaign co-ordination, Mrs May's refusal to take part in TV debates and the disastrous dementia tax in the Tory manifesto were all nails in the campaign's coffin.

(Image: PA)

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Conservative MPs reportedly didn't see the party's full manifesto until 20 minutes before it was revealed to the press.

One MP whose majority was slashed said: “Corbyn was promising the Earth to students, benefit claimants and everyone. We offered misery.”

Timothy and Hill resigned two days after the election - after being dubbed "toxic" by senior Tory MPs who demanded their heads in exchange for continued support for Mrs May.

Gavin Barwell - one of eight Conservative ministers who lost their seats in the election - is now her new chief of staff.

And the party has been left wondering how it squandered a 20-point poll lead and led itself into one of the worst self-inflicted political wounds of modern times.