The first results of Thursday’s municipal elections in England show gains for Britain’s opposition leader, the Labor Party, at the expense of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives.
After accounting for 62 of the 230 municipalities that went to the polls, Labor won 653 seats out of some eight thousand in dispute, 120 more than in 2019, while the Tories lost 226, after electing 452 councillors.
The Liberal Democrats, the fourth largest opposition party, are also taking advantage of the Conservatives’ slip, winning 59 new seats out of 329 secured.
The Greens also have 33 more among the 55 chosen. Although the bulletin count began overnight in some places, most of the results will only be known during the day this Friday.
Analysts hope that the results of these elections, the last on a national scale before the legislative elections scheduled for 2024, give an idea of the voting trend.
Political scientist John Curtice said that “the clear message tonight is that the Conservatives are doing badly, not just because they have already lost around 200 seats, but because they could lose around 1000 by the end of the day.”
“The problem with the Labor Party, although it has achieved some of its goals and has already made significant progress, is that it is sharing the leftovers with other opposition parties,” he added, speaking to the BBC.
This was the first time voters were required to present photo identification to vote, preventing some people from being able to do so, according to the Electoral Commission.
The UK does not have an identity card and citizens rely on passports or driving licenses when they need to prove their identity, for example at the bank.
Source: TSF
