LONDON (AP) 鈥� Britain鈥檚 Labour Party was headed for a landslide victory in a on Thursday, an exit poll suggested, as voters punished the governing Conservatives after 14 years of economic and political upheaval.
The poll released moments after indicated that center-left Labour鈥檚 leader will be the country鈥檚 next prime minister. He will face a impatient for change against a gloomy backdrop of , mounting distrust in institutions and a fraying social fabric.
The historic defeat for the Conservatives leaves the party depleted and in disarray and will likely spark a contest to replace as leader.
鈥淣othing has gone well in the last 14 years,鈥� said London voter James Erskine, who was optimistic for change in the hours before polls closed. 鈥淚 just see this as the potential for a seismic shift, and that鈥檚 what I鈥檓 hoping for.鈥�
While the suggested result appears to buck recent rightward electoral shifts in Europe, including in France and Italy, many of those same populist undercurrents flow in Britain. Reform UK leader has roiled the race with his party鈥檚 anti-immigrant 鈥渢ake our country back鈥� sentiment and undercut support for the Conservatives, who already faced dismal prospects.
Labour is on course to win about 410 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons and the Conservatives 131, according to the exit poll. That would be the fewest number of seats for the Tories in their nearly two-century history and would leave the party in disarray.
Former Conservative leader William Hague said the poll indicated 鈥渁 catastrophic result in historic terms for the Conservative Party.鈥�
Still, Labour politicians, inured to years of disappointment, were cautious, with full results still hours off.
鈥淭he exit poll is encouraging, but obviously we don鈥檛 have any of the results yet,鈥� deputy leader Angela Rayner told Sky News.
In a sign of the volatile public mood and anger at the system, some smaller parties appeared to have done well, including the centrist and Farage鈥檚 Reform UK.
The poll is conducted by pollster Ipsos and asks people at scores of polling stations to fill out a replica ballot showing how they have voted. It usually provides a reliable though not exact projection of the final result.
Britain has experienced a run of turbulent years 鈥� some of it of the Conservatives鈥� own making and some of it not 鈥� that has left many voters pessimistic about their country鈥檚 future. The U.K.鈥檚 exit from the European Union followed by the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia鈥檚 invasion of Ukraine battered the economy, while held by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff caused widespread anger.
Johnson鈥檚 successor, Liz Truss, rocked the economy further with a package of drastic tax cuts and lasted just 49 days in office. Rising poverty and cuts to state services have led to gripes about 鈥淏roken Britain.鈥�
Hundreds of communities were locked in tight contests in which traditional party loyalties come second to more immediate concerns about the , and the .
In Henley-on-Thames, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) west of London, voters like Patricia Mulcahy, who is retired, sensed the nation was looking for something different. The community, which normally votes Conservative, may change its stripes this time.
鈥淭he younger generation are far more interested in change,鈥欌�� Mulcahy said. 鈥淪o, I think whatever happens in Henley, in the country, there will be a big shift. But whoever gets in, they鈥檝e got a heck of a job ahead of them. It鈥檚 not going to be easy.鈥�
In the first hour polls were open, Sunak made the short journey from his home to vote at Kirby Sigston Village Hall in northern England. He arrived with his wife, Akshata Murty, and walked hand-in-hand into the village hall, which is surrounded by rolling fields.
Labour has had a steady and significant lead in opinion polls for months, but its leaders warned in recent days against taking the election result for granted, worried their supporters would stay home.
"Change. Today, you can vote for it,鈥� leader Starmer wrote Thursday on the X social media platform.
A couple of hours after posting that message, Starmer walked with his wife, Victoria, into a polling place in north London to cast his vote. He left through a back door out of sight of a crowd of residents and journalists who had gathered.
Labour has not set pulses racing with its pledges to get the sluggish economy growing, invest in infrastructure and make Britain a 鈥渃lean energy superpower.鈥�
But nothing has really gone wrong in its campaign, either. The party has won the support of large chunks of the business community and endorsements from traditionally conservative newspapers, including the Rupert Murdoch-owned Sun tabloid, which praised Starmer for 鈥渄ragging his party back to the center ground of British politics.鈥�
Former Labour candidate Douglas Beattie, author of the book 鈥淗ow Labour Wins (and Why it Loses),鈥� said Starmer's 鈥渜uiet stability probably chimes with the mood of the country right now.鈥�
The Conservatives, meanwhile, have been plagued by gaffes. The campaign got off to an inauspicious start when rain drenched Sunak as he outside 10 Downing St. Then, Sunak from commemorations in France marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.
Several Conservatives close to Sunak are being investigated over suspicions they used inside information to on the date of the election before it was announced.
Sunak has struggled to shake off the taint of political chaos and mismanagement that鈥檚 gathered around the Conservatives.
But for many voters, the applies not just to the governing party, but to politicians in general.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know who鈥檚 for me as a working person,鈥� said Michelle Bird, a port worker in Southampton on England鈥檚 south coast who was undecided about whether to vote Labour or Conservative. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know whether it鈥檚 the devil you know or the devil you don鈥檛.鈥�
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Brian Melley And Jill Lawless, The Associated Press
