Polls open for landmark vote | Wilnesh News

LONDON — Britain heads to the ballot box on Thursday as the incumbent Conservatives try to challenge months of polls that have pointed to a historic defeat for the party at the hands of centre-left Labor.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak surprised politicians and the public alike by announcing the results six weeks ago. Most expect the election to be held later this year, giving more time for the recent drop in inflation and expected lower interest rates to stimulate voters’ wallets.

A number of smaller parties are vying for seats in the UK House of Commons (which has 650 MPs), including the Lib Dems, the Greens, the Scottish National Party, Gladys Cymru, the Democratic Unionist Party and Nigel Farage’s leadership of the British Reform Party. Voting will take place in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

In the British political system, a party increasing its share of the popular vote does not necessarily mean winning more parliamentary seats – and it is almost certain that either the Conservatives or Labor, led by Keir Starmer, will gain power. This can be achieved by winning an absolute majority or forming a coalition government.

Congress says the leader of the party with the most seats in the House of Commons will become Prime Minister

political investigation It has been nearly two years Hannah Bunting, a lecturer in British quantitative politics at the University of Exeter, said Labor would achieve a landslide victory, although the party would need a historic increase of almost 13% of the national vote to win even a narrow victory. majority of seats in parliament. It would be a bigger turnaround than Labour’s Tony Blair achieved against John Major in 1997.

Labor’s strong lead strengthens in major headline poll Posted by YouGov earlier this week.

However, politicians and Labor itself have warned that no result is guaranteed and the polls may be inaccurate. More than 100 seats are considered close, including those currently held by high-profile Tories, including finance secretary Jeremy Hunt and Sunak himself.

Thursday’s vote was the first British general election since 2019, when then-Conservative leader Boris Johnson defeated Jeremy Corbyn’s Labor Party to win the party’s first election since 1987. The largest majority victory in years. It is a platform that promises to complete the “Brexit” process of leaving the European Union, which has been mired in political deadlock.

Subsequently, multiple public scandals broke out in Johnson’s government, including the “partygate” case of senior politicians violating lockdown rules during the Covid-19 pandemic, leading to his resignation in July 2022.

He was succeeded by Liz Truss, who lasted just 44 days before resigning amid the so-called mini-budget crisis that rocked financial markets.

Sunak, a former Conservative finance minister, has since endured a period of relative political stability as the country grapples with a severe cost-of-living crisis and sluggish economic growth.

The legacy of 14 years of Conservative rule – the party won power in 2010 through a coalition government led by David Cameron – has been a key theme of the campaign.

Sunak and Starmer have sought to convince the public that their party can tackle key issues such as housing, the NHS and defence.

Sunak claimed during a debate in early June that Labour’s policies would result in a tax rise of £2,000 ($2,553.73) for “every working family” during the next parliament. Starmer said the figure was “made up” and that the party had set out plans for tax increases that would only target certain groups.

The public can vote for local council candidates from 7am to 10pm local time, with closely watched exit polls to be released shortly after.

Ballots will be counted overnight and results are expected to be announced on Friday morning.