Labour Takes First Seat in 2024 General Election; Conservatives Face Major Losses
Labour has secured the first seat of the 2024 UK general election in Houghton and Sunderland South, with Bridget Phillipson, Labour’s education chief, declared the first member of the new parliament. Phillipson remarked that if exit polls hold true, "the British people have chosen change" after 14 years. Notably, the Nigel Farage-led Reform UK party candidate achieved significant advances, surpassing the Conservatives for second place.
Historically, constituencies in northern England compete to be the first to declare results, with Newcastle achieving this in the 2017 and 2019 elections. Between 1992 and 2015, Sunderland held this distinction.
Polling expert John Curtice attributed the projected Conservative losses to gains made by smaller parties like Reform UK, rather than just Labour’s performance. Reform UK, a right-wing populist party, is projected to win 13 seats, impacting Conservative-held areas more significantly. The overall share of votes for Labour may not be as high as in previous years, despite the landslide projection.
In Scotland, the SNP is set to lose a substantial number of seats, declining from 48 in 2019 to just 10. This follows internal turmoil and leadership changes, with recent scandals involving former leaders Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf.
Exit polls suggest a historic electoral swing, with Labour projected to win a majority of 410 seats out of 650, a significant increase from their 202 seats in 2019. Conversely, the Conservatives are forecasted to secure only 131 seats, a dramatic decrease from their previous 365.
As results continue to roll in, well-known politicians, including Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, face potential electoral defeats reminiscent of the famed "Portillo moment" of 1997.
The manual counting of ballots has begun across the UK, with full results expected by Friday morning. Early exit polls indicate a landslide victory for Labour under Keir Starmer and a severe decline for the ruling Conservatives.
— Jenni Reid
Original Story https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/04/uk-election-2024-result-keir-starmers-labour-to-beat-conservatives.html
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