LONDON: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak conceded defeat in the national election on Friday, saying the opposition Labour Party had won.
“The Labour Party has won this general election and I have called Sir Keir Starmer to congratulate him on his victory,” Sunak said after winning his parliamentary seat in northern England.
“Today, power will change hands in a peaceful and orderly manner, with goodwill on all sides. That is something that should give us all confidence in our country’s stability and future.”
Keir Starmer, the Labour Party leader on track to be the UK’s new prime minister, on Friday thanked voters and said the people of the country are “ready for change” and to “end the politics of performance”, as he spoke for the first time since the exit poll predicted a landslide for his party in the general election.
Starmer, 61, in his victory speech after winning from Holborn and St Pancras, said whether people voted for him or not, “I’ll serve every person in this constituency.” His speech came after Britons resoundingly voted to put an end to 14 years of Conservative rule and deliver a landslide victory for the Labour Party According to the exit poll, which is often quite close to the final tally, Labour could win as many as 410 seats, comfortably crossing the halfway 326 mark and notching up a 170-seat majority with the incumbent Tories led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak down to just 131 seats.
As the results started pouring in, the Labour Party won 184 seats, the Conservatives 32, the Liberal Democrats 23, the Scottish National Party 3 and others 11.
“I will speak out for you, have your back, fight your corner every single day,” he said, adding people are “ready for change” and to “end the politics of performance”.
“Tonight, people here and around the country have spoken,” he said.
Starmer was beaming as he arrived at the count, posing for selfies and taking his time to work his way through supporters and activists.
“The change begins right here because this is your democracy, your community, your future,” he said. “You have voted. It’s now time for us to deliver.” Starmer thanked all those involved in the count and his fellow candidates.
He said the heart of our democracy beats not in Westminster or Whitehall, but in town halls, community centres and in the hands of people who hold the vote.
“Change begins in this community with the people who came together to make life better,” he said.
He thanked his wife and family for keeping him ‘grounded’ He said it is a “huge privilege” to be re-elected to serve Holborn and St Pancras.
It is “my home, where my kids have grown up, where my wife was born,” he says of the area.
He won with 18,884 votes – with pro-Palestinian activist, independent Andrew Feinstein, in second place. Starmer’s majority, however, was down significantly from 22,766 in 2019, to 11,572.
Two Conservative Cabinet ministers have lost their seats just seconds apart, as the scale of the Tories’ misery increases on a devastating election night.
In the highest-profile Conservative loss so far, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps lost his seat to Labour. Justice Secretary Alex Chalk lost his seat to the Liberal Democrats.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage became an MP for the first time, winning from Clacton.
Suella Braverman, an outspoken figure on the Conservative Party’s right and a potential future party leader, won her seat.
But she issued a blunt apology and critique of what she said was the party’s failure to listen to its supporters.
“I’m sorry my party didn’t listen to you,” Braverman, who is of Indian heritage with a Goan-origin father and Tamil-origin mother, said.
“The Conservative Party has let you down,” the former home secretary said.