Five things to know about the landslide victory for Labour Party in UK elections

Keir Starmer led the Labour Party to a resounding victory over the Conservatives in the United Kingdom Thursday evening, shaking up British politics as discontent grows with growing poverty rates and record-high energy prices.

After 14 years of Conservative governance, the Labour Party roared back after former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called for the snap election to take place weeks before the obligated date.

Here are five things to know about the landslide victory and what it means for America’s closest ally.

Who is Keir Starmer, the new prime minister?

Since being elected to the British Parliament in 2015, Keir Starmer has focused his efforts on making his party more electable. While he is a socialist, the new prime minister has moved to the center on some economic issues and has frustrated some pro-Palestinian factions of his party with his position on the war in Gaza.

Starmer promised “national renewal” as he gave a victory speech on Friday morning. He chuckled as he was congratulated by “Elmo” — or, rather, independent candidate Bobby Smith, who was dressed as the red Sesame Street character.

Labour was able to win 412 out of a possible 650 seats – almost 64%, despite only garnering 35% of the vote share, thanks to Britain’s first past the post electoral system. The seat total was their best showing since 1997, when Tony Blair swept to power with 418 seats, and matched their 2001 total.

Sunak apologizes for brutal result

After Sunak’s party lost 251 seats in Parliament, he apologized for the brutal loss.

“This is a difficult day at the end of a number of difficult days,” the outgoing prime minister said Friday morning. “I am sorry. I take responsibility for the loss.”

Labour took 412 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons. The Conservatives retained 121 seats as the country waits for the election results in two more districts.

Sunak said he would step down as the leader of the Conservative Party but “not immediately,” as he will try to firm up the succession plans before moving aside.

Liz Truss and other prominent Tories lose their seats

Former Prime Minister Liz Truss, who was Britain’s shortest-serving leader as she spent just 49 days in the role, was among the Conservatives who lost their seats. She became the first former prime minister to lose her seat in 100 years.

In 2022, Britain elected her to lead the country by more than 26,000 votes. On Friday morning, Truss lost her race by 630 votes, a damning indictment on the country’s disenchantment with the Conservative Party.

“I think the issue we faced as Conservatives is we haven’t delivered sufficiently on the policies people want,” Truss told the BBC after her loss. The former prime minister faced widespread criticism for sparking financial turmoil during her chaotic 49-day rule.

Penny Mordaunt, a onetime Conservative leader of the House of Commons, also lost her seat by under 2 percentage points. Mordaunt, who served in Sunak’s Cabinet, suffered a narrow defeat to Labour’s Amanda Martin.

Nigel Farage finally becomes an MP

While Labour took home landslide wins, the Reform U.K. party snagged significant wins, claiming a historic four parliamentary seats. Nigel Farage became a member of Parliament for the first time, celebrating as his party tracks to become the third-largest party in Britain. Farage says Reform U.K. will “now be targeting Labour votes.”

Former President Donald Trump congratulated Farage, a longtime ally who shares similar views on immigration.

“Congratulations to Nigel Farage on his big WIN of a Parliament Seat Amid Reform UK Election Success,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Nigel is a man who truly loves his Country! DJT.”

Farage was a central player in the Brexit fight, and his participation in the election this year was a last-minute surprise. After formerly leading the U.K. Independence Party and the Brexit Party, Farage announced last month he was going to run for leader of the Reform U.K. party.

His Reform party as a whole, however, fell victim to Britain’s electoral system, winning 14% of the vote share, but only four seats. The Liberal Democrats, meanwhile, traditionally the country’s third biggest party, won 71 seats with just 12% of the vote.

Scottish National Party suffers bloody nose

The Tories weren’t the only ones who faced a string of defeats on Thursday.

The Scottish National Party, which has dominated politics north of the border for more than two decades, was reduced to just nine seats, losing 37 and garnering just more than 700,000 votes. The shellacking was the party’s worst performance since 2010 and came after more than two years of chaos.

The Scottish independence movement’s leader, Nicola Sturgeon, unexpectedly resigned last year. Her successor, Humza Yousaf, was also plagued with difficulties, resigning in May after serving for only 13 months.

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The party only competed for the 57 seats up for grabs in Scotland. A resounding victory there would have given teeth to the renewed independence referendum, but leadership problems along with fractured feelings about the referendum slowed momentum for the movement.

“We are experiencing something that we have not experienced in quite some time,” the Scottish National Party’s Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, said. “We are going to be beat in Scotland, and we are going to be beat well.”