Thursday’s general election marks a pivotal moment for Britain after 14 years of Conservative rule, with opinion polls predicting it will return the centre-left Labour party to power and herald a fundamental reshaping of British politics.
Millions of voters in 650 constituencies vote for candidates to represent them as members of Parliament. The party that wins the most seats usually forms Britain’s next government, and its leader also becomes prime minister.
To win a majority, a party needs to secure 326 seats. If the leading party does not reach that number, it can try to form a government with the support of other parties.
The major parties and key players in the electoral race are:
Conservative Party
leader: Chancellor Rishi Sunak
Mr Sunak became chancellor in October 2022, succeeding Liz Truss, whose plan for huge tax cuts rattled financial markets and forced her to resign after just seven weeks in office. But Britain’s mortgage rates have continued to soar and the economy has stagnated, and under Mr Sunak the Conservative Party has suffered bitter defeats in special parliamentary elections as well as mayoral and local council elections.
Defenders of the 44-year-old Mr. Sunak say he is a victim of global economic headwinds caused by the coronavirus pandemic and deserves credit for stabilizing markets. But critics say he has never put forward a convincing strategy to reignite growth since then. Nor has he delivered on two other promises: to cut waiting times in the National Health Service and to stop boats ferrying asylum seekers across the English Channel. Some say Mr. Sunak, a former Goldman Sachs banker whose wife is the daughter of an Indian tech billionaire, is simply not relatable.
Labor Party
leader: Keir Starmer
The Labor Party Double-digit lead In a public opinion poll 18 monthsMr. Starmer, 61, a former prosecutor and human rights lawyer, has methodically reshaped his party as a center-left alternative to the divided, mercurial and sometimes extreme Conservatives. If Labour wins, Mr. Starmer would be Labour’s first prime minister since Gordon Brown stepped down in 2010.
A Labour government will operate under strict fiscal constraints, raising questions about whether Starmer will have to raise taxes to finance his promised investment in the NHS and other public services. While he has made a blanket promise not to raise taxes on “workers”, Labour is expected to raise taxes on oil and gas companies, private equity firms and high-income foreigners living in the UK.
Reform Britain
leader: Nigel Farage
The Reform Party, a small anti-immigration party, Rising in the polls Senior Conservative Party officials worry that it could alienate supporters from the candidate. Farage, a Brexit campaigner and staunch supporter of Donald Trump, initially said he would not stand in the election, but then reversed course last month, announcing he would stand in the parliamentary election for Clacton, a small seaside town where 70 percent of the electorate lives. I chose Brexit The 2016 election campaign could be chaotic, potentially working to Labour’s advantage by splitting the right-wing vote.
LDP
Leader: Ed Davey
The Liberal Democrats, a small, centre-right party, are well placed to win seats in affluent areas like Surrey, where right-wing voters view them more favourably than Labour. The Liberal Democrats made health and social care a key priority in their campaign, helped by Davie, 58, who spoke movingly about his own struggles, including caring for his disabled teenage son. He also embarked on a publicity spree that included bungee jumping and paddleboarding, seeking to deflect attention from the party’s main rivals.
Other political parties
In Scotland, the once dominant Scottish National Party The funding scandal and the resignation of First Minister Nicola Sturgeon give Labour an opportunity to win more seats in the state and ease Starmer’s path to becoming prime minister. Green Party The ruling party made significant gains in local elections in early May, and pre-election polls suggested it was winning over left-leaning voters, particularly 18- to 24-year-olds, who had been alienated by Labour’s move to the centre.
