Labor Predicted to Rout Sunak’s Conservatives as Britain Goes to Polls
Britain looks set to elect Labor Party leader Keir Starmer as its next prime minister when voters go to the polls on Thursday, sweeping Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives out of office after 14 often turbulent years.
Opinion polls put Starmer’s center-left party on course for a landslide victory as voters turn their backs on the Conservatives following a period of infighting and turmoil that led to five prime ministers in eight years, Reuters said.
However, surveys show many voters simply want change, rather than fervently backing Labor, meaning Starmer could enter office with one of the biggest to-do lists in British history but without a groundswell of support or the financial resources to tackle it.
“Today, Britain can begin a new chapter,” Starmer told voters in a statement on Thursday. “We cannot afford five more years under the Conservatives. But change will only happen if you vote Labor.”
Sunak, who called the election months earlier than expected, has in recent weeks abandoned his call for a fifth consecutive Conservative victory, switching instead to warning of the dangers of an unchallenged Labor Party in parliament.
He issued a fresh rallying cry to voters for election day, saying a Labor government would hike taxes, hamper economic recovery and leave Britain more vulnerable at a time of geopolitical tension, charges Labor deny.
“They will do lasting damage to our country and our economy – just like they did the last time they were in power,” Sunak said. “Don’t let that happen.”
If the opinion polls are correct, Britain will follow other European countries in punishing their governments after a cost of living crisis that stemmed from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Unlike France it looks set to move to the center left and not further right.