Conservatives Suffer Historic Losses in UK Local Elections as Labor Surges

News Desk

Islamabad: Britain’s governing Conservative Party faced significant setbacks in local election results announced Friday, heightening expectations that the Labor Party could reclaim power after a 14-year absence in the upcoming UK general election.

Labor secured control of councils in England that it hadn’t held for decades, along with a victory in a parliamentary by-election.

If these results are replicated in the general election, it would mark one of the Conservatives’ largest defeats in history.

Despite the overall disappointing results, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak found some solace as the Conservative mayor of Tees Valley in northeast England was reelected, albeit with a diminished share of the vote. Ben Houchen’s victory, attributed to his personalized campaign, may help Sunak mitigate any potential backlash from Conservative lawmakers.

Labor leader Keir Starmer enjoyed largely positive results, though in areas with significant Muslim populations like Blackburn and Oldham in northwest England, the party’s candidates seemed to suffer due to the leadership’s strongly pro-Israel stance during the Gaza conflict.

Of particular significance for the impending general election, Labour regained the parliamentary seat of Blackpool South in northwest England.

The seat had been won by the Conservatives in the 2019 general election, during which then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson made substantial gains in Brexit-supporting regions.