In an historic election on Thursday, voters in the United Kingdom handed Conservatives their worst loss in party history.
The Conservatives, lead by now-former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, the first PM of color in UK history, lost more than 250 seats in parliament last night. Many Conservatives described the loss as “devastating”, “a thumping” and an “electoral armageddon”. The party went from holding 372 seats at the time parliament dissolved in May, to just 121 after yesterday’s vote.
In contrast, the Labour party (equivalent to America’s Democratic party), revolutionized by leader Keir Starmer, gained 214 seats last night. His party will now control at least 412 of the 650 seats in Parliament.
Polls in the historic election closed at 10pm London time Thursday night. By 10am Friday morning, Keir Starmer was officially the country’s new prime minister. It marks the first time in 14 years (and only the seventh time in history) that a Labour party-leader has served as the UK’s prime minister.
Conservative collapse leads to gains for liberal candidates across the UK
Labour’s massive victory was accompanied by other gains by left and center-left parties across the nation.
The UK’s now third largest party, the Liberal Democrats, gained 63 seats overnight – skyrocketing its parliamentary membership from just eight to now 71 seats.
The Liberal Democrats focused their efforts on the South of the country, targeting Conservative strongholds with a energetic campaign highlighting kitchen table issues most affecting UK voters.
Green party members were also elated by their performance Thursday. In the last parliament, the party held just one seat. Now, the party will control four seats after receiving nearly two million votes nationwide.
Six independent candidates also defied conventional wisdom by gaining seats across the UK. Many of these candidates won by focusing much of their campaign on support for a ceasefire in Gaza.
But more progressive party candidates weren’t the only benefactors of the Conservative party’s collapse. The newly formed Reform UK party, a right-wing, anti-immigrant party helmed by Brexit leader Nigel Farage, won five parliamentary seats.
Reform candidates controlled roughly 14% of the vote nationwide, and leapt into second in dozens of contests. The party has faced sharp criticism from inside and outside its ranks for fostering racist, bigoted, and misogynistic beliefs. It won its five seats by taking over some of the districts that voted most heavily in favor of the country exiting the European Union in 2016.
New Prime Minister promises the work of restoring trust in government “begins immediately”
With this worrisome rise in the far right, coupled with ongoing economic hardships, healthcare crises and infrastructure woes across the country, the Labour party acknowledges it has significant work ahead of regain the trust of Britons in their government.
Immediately upon entering 10 Downing Street, Starmer began appointing his cabinet, including the first female Chancellor (equivalent to the US Treasury Secretary) and second Black foreign minister (equivalent to the US Secretary of State) in UK history.
“For too long [the government] turned a blind eye as millions slid into greater insecurity,” Starmer said in his victory speech. “I want to say very clearly to those people: Not this time.”
“Changing a country is not like flicking a switch,” he continued.
“The world is now a more volatile place. This will take a while, but have no doubt the work of change will begin immediately.”
