A good part of the conservative legislators are stunned, stupefied, completely perplexed by the Prime Minister’s announcement on Tuesday British, Rishi Sunak, to advance the general elections to July 4. The decision, as reported by the British media, was only known to a handful of close advisors. The rest of the party found out at the same time as the rest of the world, when Sunak walked out the door of 10 Downing Street to make the statement in the heavy London rain.
Many conservatives believe that date is too close and they fear that the six weeks they have left to convince skeptical voters will not be enough. Seven legislators from the conservative party, who spoke on condition of anonymity with the agency Reutersthey expressed feeling “bewildered and frustrated by the timing of the vote”, since Sunak could have waited until the end of the year to call them. None of them had any hope that the conservatives could obtain a parliamentary majority after the elections.
The polls do not bode well for a party that has been in power uninterruptedly for 14 years. Since July last year, the Conservatives have consistently been around 20 percentage points behind the Labor opposition. In the latest survey carried out by companies from the British Polling Council, the Conservative Party would obtain a 23.1% compared to 44.5% for the Labor Party led by Keir Starmer. In fact, the prediction model of The Economist currently grants them a probability of winning the election less than 1%.
The mood within the Tory party is extremely dramatic, reflecting the deep concern and bewilderment among its members. Ed Costello, president of the Grassroots Conservatives campaign group, assured Reuters that Current morale among conservatives is the lowest that he has known in his more than five decades in local politics. “The spark has disappeared. There is a lot of fatigue. “People are fed up,” she asserted.
Meanwhile, more than 65 conservative legislators have announced that they will leave the ship after the elections, including some of the best-known figures within the party such as former Prime Minister Theresa May. Of those who remain, many assure that they will make a very personalistic campaign and they will distance themselves from the party and its leader, Sunak. “I’m going to focus on local problems, and only them,” one of them explained with a wry smile to Reuters.
Sunak, on the other hand, considers July 4 to be the appropriate date. “Although there is work to do and I know it will take time to see the benefits, the plan is working”the prime minister told workers at a cookie distribution center this Thursday. He stated that the economy was already turning a corner, with inflation falling, wages rising and growth increasing.
[Los laboristas logran una “histórica” victoria en las municipales y exigen a Sunak convocar elecciones]
Likewise, he reiterated that he had a plan to tackle irregular immigration, although he acknowledged that the first flights with migrants bound for Rwanda would not take place before the vote. He also admitted that another of his signature policies was now in question due to the timing of the election: the smoking ban for the younger generations.
However, many analysts agree that a change in the country’s direction will not be enough to encourage voters, who are fed up with the scandals and drama associated with the conservative governments of the last decade. In a way, for Sunak, the decision to bring forward the elections seems like a flight forward, since seeing the bad news of recent months, calling them now could be a way to try your luck.
Rishi Sunak visiting a Barry distribution centre.
Reuters
Starmer, an unpopular rival
Sunak’s main challenger in the elections is also not particularly popular, and his possible victory is perceived more as a vote of punishment to the conservatives that as an endorsement of their merits. “The Starmer ratings are the lowest Ipsos has never seen for an opposition leader who is so far ahead in overall voting intention. It is more the disgust at the tories “It is delight at what Labor is offering that is driving policy,” said Ben Page, chief executive of market and opinion research firm Ipsos, to Guardian.
The Labor leader, the country’s former chief prosecutor, has returned Labor politics to the center after the tilt to the left with his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, who retired after the resounding failure in the 2019 elections. At an event in Gillingham, southeast of England, Starmer stated that his objective is to “renew, rebuild and revitalize the Kingdom Kingdom”, focusing on “the deprivations and invisible barriers that prevent many from improving their lot”.
If Labor wins, Starmer would become the United Kingdom’s sixth prime minister in eight years — the highest turnover since 1830s— underscoring the level of turmoil that has gripped the country, once known for its political stability and pragmatism, since Brexit. For the moment, Sunak has received a breath of fresh air with Nigel Farage’s announcement not to stand for Reform UK, which will likely reduce the appeal of the right-wing vote and the far-right party’s ability to attract voters. the conservative voter base.
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