Prime Minister Rishi Sunak quite suddenly announced the election date on May 22. July 4 means the UK General Election is just six weeks away. Like other times, this election will be held on Thursday. However, due to timing, July is not suitable for people in Scotland and Northern Ireland to vote. Because the school is closed then. Many go here and there to take advantage of that opportunity.
Prime Minister Rishi called the election at a time when polls showed his party trailing the Conservative Party by nearly 20 points over the opposition Labor Party. 326 seats are required for majority. According to the survey published in the Guardian, the Labor Party will get at least 472 seats. The ruling Conservative Party is expected to win as many as 85 seats. The Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party could get as many as 50 and 19 seats respectively. The rest of the small parties together can get as many as 24 seats. In the 2019 election, Labor won 202 seats and the Conservative Party won 365. The Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party won 11 and 48 seats respectively. Other smaller parties got as many as 23 seats.
The survey says that the condition of the ruling party is bad. Unless something happens soon, there is no chance of the Conservative Party coming to power. So the question is, why did Rishi Sunak announce the election now? In fact, he had to announce the election today or tomorrow this year. However, the main reason behind this announcement could be the decrease in inflation in the United Kingdom. As a result, the prices of electricity, fuel and food items have come down.
Another claim of Rishi Sunak is that the economy of the United Kingdom is doing the best among the G-7 countries.
Although the present government has no significant role behind it. Many of its changes have occurred in accordance with normal market norms. Yet Rishi is going to capitalize on some more big changes like this to bet on the upcoming elections. However, the Labor Party claims that the economy is at a standstill. There is no possibility of major changes ahead. Apart from that, the government is unlikely to get any success in the illegal immigration issue.
Then there is no possibility of Rishi Sunak being elected as Prime Minister. The situation seems to be, no, not. It is good to know that Rishi is not the elected Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He became the party leader and came to power as Prime Minister by the votes of his party members. His party has been in power for almost 14 years. Except for the initial few years, in the last eight years, there has been no end of conflict within Rishi Sunak’s team.
Boris Johnson felt that Sage was a threat to him when he was Prime Minister. It was then that various news related to taxes and property of Rishi and his wife spread in the media. Boris was believed to be behind it. Later Rishi also withdrew his support from Boris at one point in his tenure as chancellor and resigned. Boris had to step down as a result.
Boris did the same thing as the sage with Theresa May. Who had to leave power over the Brexit issue. Boris Johnson did not want to become Prime Minister even though he gained popularity on the issue of Brexit. Because, he knew the condition of his party very well. He wanted to become the prime minister by popular vote. Boris is no longer in power, but his ghost still haunts the sage.
Boris’s influence in the party still exists. Many have accused Rishi of stabbing Boris in the back. His party is divided into several factions. Several heavyweight MPs are breathing down his neck. Secretly preparing to take charge of the party.
Interestingly, most of the team members want to blame the defeat on Rishi. Therefore, despite being so far behind in the survey, most of the parliamentarians want to contest the election under the leadership of Sunak. Lose in simple terms. However, Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt said he would fight with every bone in his body to keep Rishi in power. But just trying hard doesn’t seem to work. Adding flesh and blood to bones doesn’t seem to reduce the rate gap much.
In fact, intra-party infighting over the last eight years has weakened the Conservative Party to such an extent that the British public is quite fed up with them. So are world leaders. The former Chancellor of Germany said that Brexit was not what British democracy wanted. Brexit happened at the behest of ambitious politicians from fragile political parties. Because, the government and the Conservative Party did not have the minimum preparation to deal with Brexit. This is the situation within the party. How does Sunak compare to rival Kier Starmer? The answer is, not good. If you don’t speak well, you are lying. Too bad to say.
So how about Kieran Starmer? The answer is, good. Keir Starmer is not very popular personally. But as leader of the Labor Party and leader of the opposition, he is leading the race to become the next prime minister. Starmer is unpopular with traditional Labor voters. Because he is moderate. Much like Tony Blair. His political strategy has been compared to the precious porcelain of the Ming Dynasty. Analysts say Starmer is carrying a precious Ming Dynasty vase. Tread very carefully. So that the vase does not break.
Since taking over from Jeremy Corbyn, Starmer has been doing whatever it takes to become prime minister. What is Palestine, what is immigration, he did not go against the flow in anything. Tried to be politically correct the whole time. Corbyn’s political manifesto changed almost everything. His party also achieved unprecedented success in the local government elections.
But Vase’s political maneuvering is not doing Kier Starmer much favor personally. In 2014, 27 percent of British adults thought the Labor Party kept its promises, according to polls. In the survey of April 2024, this rate decreased to 17 percent.
In 2014, 52 percent of British adults thought the Labor Party understood the problems the UK was going through. In the survey of April 2024, this rate decreased to 39 percent.
In 2014, 31 percent of British adults thought the Labor Party led a good party. In the survey of April 2024, this rate decreased to 24 percent.
In 2014, 41 percent of British adults thought the Labor Party was capable of running a government. In the survey of April 2024, this rate decreased to 31 percent.
Ben Page, chief executive of IPSS, which conducted the poll, said Kier Starmer’s personal popularity is very low. He had never seen so little in an opposition leader before. According to him, most of the people actually do not like the rulers. That doesn’t mean they are interested in what the Labor Party will do if it comes to power.
The point is that the British people want the Labor Party in power. But less confidence in leadership? Or the people who have seen five Prime Ministers in the last eight years cannot fully trust any political leader?
Almost as complicated as this question is, the answer is more complicated than that. There is no chance to accept the answer that will be obtained from the July 4 election as final. Because, whoever is planning to take over as Prime Minister, his popularity can fly at any time and change the reality of clinging to his position into fantasy. Because winning the election is not the end here.