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CV NEWS FEED // General elections in the UK on July 4 saw a string of historic losses for the country’s Conservative Party and the rise to power of the opposition Labour Party for the first time in 14 years.
In what the BBC described as “a landslide majority” victory, the center-left Labour Party won 412 seats in Parliament while the Conservatives walked away with just 121.
As AP News reported, the previously worst showing the Conservative Party made in a general election was in 1906, when it won just 156 seats.
In this week’s election, third parties and independent candidates made an exceptionally strong showing across the board – to an arguably unprecedented degree in modern British politics.
Labour candidates and Conservatives (commonly known as the Tories), combined, only received 57.5% of the vote despite winning more than 80% of the seats in Parliament.
The upstart right-wing populist Reform UK Party garnered an impressive 14% of the vote, which translated into a win of five seats.
Meanwhile, the pro-European Union (EU) Liberal Democrats won 12% of the vote and an impressive 71 seats – the most ever in the party’s 36-year history. The Green Party surpassed its record as well, coming in just shy of 7% of the vote and winning four seats.
A handful of far-left independent candidates, including jilted former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, also triumphed in previously safe-for-Labour seats.
Labour leader Starmer steps in as prime minister
Having accepted King Charles’ invitation to form a new government on July 5, Britain’s new prime minister, Keir Starmer, promised voters in his first address at Downing Street that whether they voted Labour or not, his government would serve them.
In the UK, the prime minister is the leader of the party that wins the most seats in a general election. After the general election, the monarch calls upon the leader of the majority party to officially assume the role of prime minister and form a new government.
“Brick by brick,” the new prime minister declared, “we will rebuild the infrastructure of opportunity.”
Rishi Sunak vacates Downing Street, says Conservatives must regroup
For his part, Rishi Sunak apologized to those gathered at Downing Street in his departing speech on July 5. “To the country, I would like to say first and foremost, I am sorry,” he said. “I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this loss.”
Sunak also said he would step down as the Conservative Party’s leader as soon as arrangements are made for his successor.
“It is important that after 14 years in government the Conservative Party rebuilds,” he stated, “but also that it takes up its crucial role in opposition professionally and effectively.”
A new government is formed
Starmer has already formed most of his cabinet, according to a report from the Telegraph, with three of the most notable appointments making headlines in the press being those of Angela Rayner as deputy prime minister, Rachel Reeves as the first female chancellor, and David Lammy as foreign secretary.
The UK publication noted that Rayner faced “intense scrutiny” over her tax affairs while campaigning for the election, she is the only person Keir cannot sack because she is an elected deputy leader.
Reeves stated that her appointment communicates to young women that there should be no limits to their ambitions.
According to Reuters, Lammy intends to push for a ceasefire in Gaza and a major “reset” in Britain’s relations with the EU. He also reportedly intends “to build ties with Donald Trump’s Republican Party.”
A multi-party Britain emerges
As the Conservative Party faltered, Nigel Farage’s Reform Party filled the void. Farage finally won re-election to Parliament for the first time in eight tries.
A well-known figure in British politics, he is a longtime supporter of Brexit (the UK’s successful exit from the EU) and strict immigration policies, as well as a noted admirer of Trump.
GB News’ Steven Edginton observed that by winning a seat in Parliament, Farage, the country’s only populist leader, has gained “a major platform to spread his ideas.”
“[Farage’s] speeches in the European Parliament [when the UK was still in the EU] helped launch his Brexit crusade,” Edginton noted. “So much opportunity.”
American populist commentator Ryan Girdusky raised the possibility of the Tories extending an olive branch to Farage’s party on X (formerly Twitter).
“If the Tories were smart, they’d offer Reform an alliance,” wrote Girdusky, a Catholic:
The Tories would not run a candidate against the 4 Reform incumbents or the 98 seats they came in second. In exchange, ask Reform to stand down in 300 races when Tories came in 1st or a close 2nd.
However, right-leaning voters were not the only ones to demonstrate a shift away from the UK’s two major parties in Thursday’s election.
In addition to the record performances of the Liberal Democrats and Greens, a group of five left-wing independent candidates won Parliamentary seats in traditionally Labour strongholds. They mainly ran on a platform of opposition to Israel’s war in Gaza. Three of these candidates upset longtime Labour incumbents, and another won in a newly created seat.
Of the five pro-Palestine independents, the most well-known was Jeremy Corbyn, Starmer’s predecessor as Labour leader who led the party from 2015 to 2020. Labour had expelled Corbyn from its ranks earlier this year.
Corbyn, however, defeated his Starmer-backed Labour opponent Thursday and returned to the Parliamentary seat he has held since 1983.
