We’re amid the political upheaval here, albeit right now it’s an internal one regarding the Democratic Party and what they’re going to do with Joe Biden, whose mental limitations might be something they can no longer overlook. Across the pond, our British cousins already had their 2024 election, and there was also a seismic shift in the political landscape. The UK Conservative Party, which has been in charge since 2010, got wiped out in the general election.
It was a historic defeat, probably the worst the party has suffered since its founding. It never recovered, or at least regarding its leadership, since Brexit. Then-Prime Minister David Cameron resigned in 2016 following the ‘Leave’ victory, which ended being a merry-go-round of prime ministers from Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, who lost her election last night, and finally, Rishi Sunak, who caused an uproar when he left the ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in June. It all culminated in a brutal night for the UK Conservatives (via The Guardian):
When the Exit Poll was released on Sky News they just came out with noises. pic.twitter.com/rHM4sFih1i
— Scott Bryan (@scottygb) July 4, 2024
Labour hits the 410 mark (what was shown by the exit poll) pic.twitter.com/kkF9q1cpl7
— umichvoter 🏳️🌈 (@umichvoter) July 5, 2024
The Conservatives are reeling from a “catastrophic” exit poll that projected they would win just 131 seats, the party’s worst election result since it was founded.
Rishi Sunak’s party is forecast to lose 241 seats overnight while Labour wins a massive 170-seat majority, according to the exit poll for the BBC, ITV and Sky.
Tory grandees and candidates said the projection was an “incredible rejection” of their party that called for major change. The former party leader William Hague said it would be a “catastrophic result in historic terms” if borne out.
There are many reasons, not least, that 14 years in power is a long time. People get tired, and voters’ patience with the antics within the Conservative Party was just too much to stomach again. It’s like the 1997 landslide win Labour achieved under Tony Blair. Labour was in the opposition for nearly two decades before they could neutralize the left-wing cancers—the Militant tendency—within the party that was costing them elections. The neo-Trotskyite antics plagued Labour, but once those were cast off, the Conservatives were also beset with a series of scandals.
It might not have been Boris Johnson’s COVID party, which apparently still angers voters. However, the “Sleaze” period hurt then-Prime Minister John Major immensely, which began over the Maastricht Treaty and the UK’s entry into the European Union. Whenever the Conservatives get into massive political trouble, a European Union issue always causes the fissure.
Labour now ushers in a new era, with 410 seats in the House of Commons. Quite the mandate.
the UK exit polls are so accurate its fascinating pic.twitter.com/A3FiGgy4ij
— umichvoter 🏳️🌈 (@umichvoter) July 4, 2024
lowest seats projected since....ever pic.twitter.com/x5SQhUux4Y
— umichvoter 🏳️🌈 (@umichvoter) July 4, 2024
🇬🇧 UK GENERAL ELECTION EXIT POLL
— umichvoter 🏳️🌈 (@umichvoter) July 4, 2024
🟥 Labour 410
🟦 Conservatives 131
🟨 Liberal Democrats 61
🟪 Reform UK 13
🟩 Greens 2
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