July 05, 2024. 7:20 PM (GMT+6)
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has written to British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and said her government looks forward to working closely with the new Labour government under the able stewardship of Starmer in further strengthening the long-standing political, economic, climate, and strategic partnerships.
July 05, 2024. 5:21 PM (GMT+6)
Keir Starmer has just officially become prime minister after an audience with the King at Buckingham Palace.
The King welcomed Sir Keir Starmer during an audience at Buckingham Palace. Pic PA
You Can Also Read: Who is Keir Starmer, The Elusive Politician?
July 05, 2024. 4:08 PM (GMT+6)
Current estimates reckon turnout at this year’s Election is below 60%, a significant drop from the 67% turnout in 2019.
Several seats across the UK have seen voter turnouts of around 50% – and some even around 40%, which is exceptionally low.
Hull East had a turnout of 42.3%, with Smethwick at 48%, Tipton and Wednesbury at 43%, and West Bromwich at 49%.
Starmer’s seat of Holborn and St Pancras had an estimated turnout of 54.6%, down more than 10% on the last election, and just 53% of the electorate turned up to vote Richard Tice in as the Reform UK MP in Boston and Skegness.
July 05, 2024. 3:30 PM (GMT+6)
Potentially the most significant news of the morning – Larry the cat has been spotted for the first time today outside Downing Street.
We’re sure he’ll be waiting eagerly to welcome his new roommate – Sir Keir Starmer – to Number 10.
At 17 years old, he has outlasted all five Tory prime ministers the country’s had since 2010.
WATCH LIVE: Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delivers his resignation speech https://t.co/nqrEDYRz7V
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) July 5, 2024
July 05, 2024. 2:35 PM (GMT+6)
Potentially the most significant news of the morning – Larry the cat has been spotted for the first time today outside Downing Street.
We’re sure he’ll be waiting eagerly to welcome his new roommate – Sir Keir Starmer – to Number 10.
At 17 years old, he has outlasted all five Tory prime ministers the country’s had since 2010.
July 05, 2024. 2:10 PM (GMT+6)
In the next 20 minutes, Rishi Sunak will address the UK for the final time as prime minister outside Number 10 Downing Street.
July 05, 2024. 1:35 PM (GMT+6)
Nearly all 650 seats have been declared – the latest one has just been announced in north London and it is a close one.
Labour’s David Pinto-Duschinsky has taken the Hendon seat from the Conservatives by 15 votes following a recount.
July 05, 2024. 12:55 PM (GMT+6)
The country’s longest-running bellwether seat has continued its record. Since 1964, whichever party has won Dartford in Kent has gone on to form the government.
That streak has continued, with the constituency turning red in line with Labor’s landslide victory. Jim Dickson won with 15,932 votes, beating Tory Gareth Johnson on 14,200 after 14 years as the MP.
Reform UK came third with 9,523, followed by the Greens with 3,189 and Liberal Democrats with 2,184.
July 05, 2024. 12:40 PM (GMT+6)
The outgoing PM is heading back to London, having flown south after confirming his safe Yorkshire seat.
He’s expected to formally resign to King Charles soon.
Later, at Buckingham Palace, the monarch will appoint Keir Starmer to lead the new government, following tradition.
Traditionally, Sunak will quickly vacate Downing Street, unlike in the US where power transitions more slowly.
As leader of the party expected to have the second-highest number of MPs, Sunak will become the opposition leader, though it’s unclear if he will remain party head.
July 05, 2024. 12:30 PM (GMT+6)
After a recount and a very close call in Devon Central, ex-work and pensions secretary Mel Stride has been re-elected as an MP.
He was the final cabinet member to be declared – and confirms that a total of 12 cabinet members have now lost their seats.
This is out of a total of 31, if we include all ministers who attend cabinet.
Mr Stride holds a majority of just 61.
July 05, 2024. 12:15 PM (GMT+6)
Labor’s Terry Jermy wins South West Norfolk with 11,847 votes.
That compares to 11,217 for Truss. She spent only a matter of weeks in Downing Street as PM in 2022 after a mini-budget went wrong.
July 05, 2024. 12:04 PM (GMT+6)
Simon Harris, the Taoiseach of Ireland, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Australia’s Anthony Albanese are among those to have sent early well wishes.
Sharing a photograph of the pair, Mr. Trudeau congratulated Sir Keir Starmer on a “historic UK election victory”.
He said: “Lots of work ahead to build a more progressive, fair future for people on both sides of the Atlantic. Let’s get to it, my friend.”
Meanwhile, in Ireland, Mr Harris said: “I congratulate him and his candidates and I look forward to working together as close neighbors and friends.”
Congratulations to my friend and new UK Prime Minister @Keir_Starmer on his resounding election victory - I look forward to working constructively with the incoming @UKLabour Government
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) July 5, 2024
July 05, 2024. 11:30 AM (GMT+6)
Labor’s Sam Carling has become the UK’s youngest MP after being elected in North West Cambridgeshire.
The 22-year-old won with a margin of less than 100 votes over Conservative predecessor Shailesh Vara.
July 05, 2024. 11:20 AM (GMT+6)
A record number of cabinet ministers have lost their seats in this election.
Here are the 11 that have been beaten:
1. Grant Shapps – defence secretary
2. Simon Hart – chief whip
3. Gillian Keegan – education secretary
4. Alex Chalk – justice secretary
5. Penny Mordaunt – Commons leader
6. Lucy Frazer – culture secretary
7. Johnny Mercer – veterans minister
8. Michelle Donelan – science, innovation and technology secretary
9. David Davies – Wales secretary
10. Victoria Prentis – attorney general
11. Mark Harper – transport secretary
July 05, 2024. 11:10 AM (GMT+6)
The Liberal Democrats have equaled their highest-ever seat total of 62.
They last secured this many seats back in 2005 during the last Labor administration.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has been celebrating his party’s results by dancing and singing to Sweet Caroline with supporters in London.
July 05, 2024. 10:30 AM (GMT+6)
Labor candidate Tulip Siddiq, the granddaughter of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, won in her constituency Hampstead and Highgate, UK with 23,432 votes (48.3%).
Meanwhile, her closest opponent Conservative candidate Don Williams won 8,462 votes.
July 05, 2024. 09:45 AM (GMT+6)
Labour is expected to win 410 seats, with the Conservatives on 144.
Rishi Sunak accepts defeat, and says he has called Starmer to congratulate him.
July 05, 2024. 04:30 AM (GMT+6)
Keir Starmer is projected to become UK’s next prime minister, with his Labour Party set to win a massive majority in the parliamentary election, according to an exit poll.
The overall outcome indicates a significant shift in public support towards the centre-left, while Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives are forecasted to suffer historic losses. Keir is supposed to put an end to 14 years of Conservative-led government.
July 05, 2024. 03:16 AM (GMT+6)
Keir Starmer’s Labour party is expected to take 410 seats, with Conservatives down to 131 in devastating wipeout for Rishi Sunak.
Exit Poll Forecast-
Labour: 410 seats (+209)
Conservatives: 131 seats (-241)
Reform: 13 seats (+13)
Lib Dems: 61 seats (+53)
SNP: 10 seats (-38)
Plaid Cymru: 4 seats (+2)
Green Party: 2 seats (+1)
Polls closed at 22:00 BST.
(At the past five general elections, the exit poll has been accurate to within a range of 1.5 and 7.5 seats.)
July 05, 2024. 01:46 AM (GMT+6)
Former Labour leader and independent candidate, Jeremy Corbyn, who running in Islington North is telling voters that “Palestine is on the ballot”.
Today, Palestine is on the ballot.
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) July 4, 2024
If you re-elect me as an Independent MP in Islington North, I promise to always stand up for the people of Gaza, and for the only path to a just and lasting peace: an end to the occupation of Palestine. pic.twitter.com/GipNJAg10M
“If you re-elect me as an Independent MP in Islington North, I promise to always stand up for the people of Gaza, and for the only path to a just and lasting peace: an end to the occupation of Palestine,” Corbyn wrote on X.
July 05, 2024. 12:31 AM (GMT+6)
Boris Johnson warned voters about the “nightmare prospect” of a Labour government in a video taken on his way to the polls. The former PM warned of “more wokery, more illegal immigration, more powerless kowtowing to Brussels, and ever-higher taxation” under Labour and urged voters to vote Conservative. The move comes days after Johnson joined Rishi Sunak on the final leg of his campaign to block Keir Starmer’s Labour “supermajority”.
Polls are now open.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) July 4, 2024
Vote Conservative! pic.twitter.com/jZQ28hnd9r
July 04, 2024. 11:58 PM (GMT+6)
George Galloway Workers Party campaigner ‘assaulted outside polling station’. Police say a woman was assaulted in Rochdale town of Littleborough
July 04, 2024. 11:40 PM (GMT+6)
Glasgow City Council has reassured voters their ballots will still be counted after incorrect advice was spotted at a polling station today.
Posters at Notre Dame primary school told people to number their chosen candidates in order of preference, using the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system, rather than marking a single “X” under the first-past-the-post system.
It said that ballots would still be counted and that whoever has a “1” next to their name on the ballot paper will receive the vote.
July 04, 2024. 11:35 PM (GMT+6)
Massive turnouts are being reported at polling stations around the country despite earlier fears of a record low turnout, writes David Maddox.
Polling in the run up to the election suggested a huge number of people had decided not to vote, especially 18- to 34-year-olds.
There were also reports from the parties that postal votes returns had been lower than normal ahead of polling day adding to the fears of apathy.
July 04, 2024. 11:21 PM (GMT+6)
Election experts – otherwise known as psephologists – will soon be heading down into the exit poll bunker to work out how the public has voted today and what it will mean for the makeup of Parliament.
Patrick English, director of political analytics at YouGov, said he would be going in with Professor John Curtice, who helped devise the current model in 2015 along with statistician David Firth.
Once in the bunker they will be processing information from replica ballot papers people across the country will have filled out after voting.
In a few minutes, I’m headed down into the exit poll bunker to take my small place in a wonderful, awesome crack team of British psephologists led by John Curtice.
— Patrick English (@PME_Politics) July 4, 2024
We’ll do everything in our power between now and 10pm to understand and report back to you how the public has voted
July 04, 2024. 10:40 PM (GMT+6)
Jack Draper of Britain celebrates after defeating Elias Ymer of Sæ&n in thei first rouu:i rnatch at the Wln%bedon tennis in Tuesday, July 2024- (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzah)
It might be election day today in the UK, but it’s also a big day for the country’s tennis stars competing at Wimbledon.
- Jack Draper, the UK’s highest-ranked men’s singles player, gave a one-word answer – “No” – when asked if he’s interested in politics.
- The 22-year-old, who faces Cameron Norrie in a second-round match, said on he did not plan on following any election coverage.
- Katie Boulter, the top-ranked women’s singles player in the UK, has also turned away a couple of election-related questions. “To be honest I’m here to focus on the tennis. I’m not necessarily sure what the correlation is between the two.
July 04, 2024. 10:25 PM (GMT+6)
![Clement Attlee at Transport House in London on July 26, 1945, to hear that Labour had won the elections [Leslie Priest/AP Photo]](https://pressxpress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/First-July-polls-in-almost-80-years.jpg)
Clement Attlee at Transport House in London on July 26, 1945, to hear that Labour had won the elections [Leslie Priest/AP Photo]
Today’s vote is Britain’s first election to be held in July since 1945.
At the time, the Labour Party under Clement Attlee beat the Conservatives of World War II leader Winston Churchill, ushering in a period of profound social change.
Attlee’s government created the modern welfare state, including the National Health Service, one of the country’s most cherished institutions.
July 04, 2024. 09:45 PM (GMT+6)
Some reports from teams on the ground say- “And the more reports we get, the more it looks like turnout is higher than expected,” according to messages sent out from the ‘CCHQ data team’ to those signed up on the party’s mailing list.
“That means we could have a MUCH better chance than polls have suggested. So if you haven’t voted yet, now’s the time to get out.”
The claim by the Tories that a higher turnout would benefit the party would be contested at this point.
July 04, 2024. 09:35 PM (GMT+6)
Fourteen years, five prime ministers, four election cycles, two UK-wide referendums and a global pandemic: a lot has happened since the Conservative party entered coalition in 2010.
And while more than half of Britons still express pride in the NHS – higher than the number who express pride in the UK’s history (32%), culture (26%) or system of democracy (25%) – people are pessimistic that the system will continue in its current form, with a belief among seven in 10 people that the NHS’s principle of “free at the point of delivery” will be eroded over the next 10 years.
July 04, 2024. 09:25 PM (GMT+6)
The prime minister is challenging for the Richmond and Northallerton seat in the Yorkshire Dales which he previously won in 2019 with a majority of more 27,000.
He has held the seat in the Yorkshire Dales since 2015, succeeding former Tory leader William Hague.
But members of Mr Sunak’s inner circle warned that he could lose in his constituency of Richmond and Northallerton, one of the safest Tory seats in the country.
July 04, 2024. 09:05 PM (GMT+6)
According to YouGov’s first June MRP predictions, 130 seats are neck-and-neck, with majorities of 0-5% for winning parties.
Here is a map of seats where Labour, the Lib Dems or the SNP are closest to overtaking the party in power.
July 04, 2024. 08:20 PM (GMT+6)
1997 was exciting for more reasons than politics, says Richard Benson who, as the editor of ‘The Face’ during ‘Cool Britannia’, says we’ll be lucky to experience anything like it again.
He writes: “If there’s a difference, between then and now it’s in the mood. Post-pandemic, current-cost of living crisis, people are angrier and more bitter, and that feels intensified by social media, which expresses and fosters hate much better than it does laughter.
“By 1997, money had started to come back into the economy, and the ubiquitous spite of social media hadn’t poisoned the national mindset; where 2023 has furious memes, the 1990s had a Vizcartoon about a corrupt Tory called Baxter Basics.”
Broadcasters are also not allowed to publish the results of any opinion poll on election day, until the polls close at 10pm.
July 04, 2024. 08:01PM (GMT+6)
There are strict rules broadcasters have to adhere to on polling day, which is why you won’t see any political news.
The rules are there to prevent any influence over how people choose to vote.
Ofcom rules state that any discussion and analysis of election issues must finish when the polls open, which was at 7am today.
Broadcasters are also not allowed to publish the results of any opinion poll on election day, until the polls close at 10pm.
July 04, 2024. 07:28 PM (GMT+6)
Kemi Badenoch, secretary of state for business and trade, has been castigating the local council in North West Essex over missing postal ballots, drawing a comparison with, she says, a desire for change at local elections that voted out the Conservatives, and suggesting that is the risk people take today if they vote for change from the party that has been in government for the last 14 years. “Don’t change for the worse,” her series of messages ends.
Lots of questions on doorstep today about missing postal ballots in North West Essex and all the shenanigans this might entail.
— Kemi Badenoch (@KemiBadenoch) July 4, 2024
“How could this happen!?” they ask.
Well… it’s an interesting parallel given the polls yesterday…..(1/4) 👇
July 04, 2024. 07:01PM (GMT+6)
Rishi Sunak is poised to lead the Conservative Party to its worst defeat in 346 years, according to a new poll by The Independent. The Techne survey, released just before the general election, predicts Labor could secure a 272-seat majority, with Sir Keir Starmer winning 461 seats.
Following a day of Tory internal strife over election prospects, one of Mr. Sunak’s closest allies admitted Labor is likely to achieve a record-breaking landslide victory. Four polls have projected varying seat counts for each party.
The most pessimistic outcome suggests the Tories could drop below 100 seats, while the best-case scenario puts them at just 126 seats. This would surpass the defeat John Major faced in 1997 when Conservative seats fell to 165.
Any of these outcomes would surpass the Tories’ previous worst election result in 1906, when they won only 156 seats, and Arthur Balfour, who had resigned as prime minister a month earlier, lost in his constituency.
July 04, 2024. 06:45PM (GMT+6)
- “The younger generation is far more interested in change,” Patricia Mulcahy, a voter in Henley-on-Thames, about 65km (40 miles) west of London. “So, I think whatever happens in Henley, in the country, there will be a big shift. But whoever gets in, they’ve got a heck of a job ahead of them. It’s not going to be easy.”
- “I just moved back from Australia and I’ve got the feeling that everything has turned wrong in this country and a lot of people are not satisfied,” Ianthe Jacob, a 32-year-old writer, told after voting in Hackney, east London.
- “I don’t trust any of them but will vote. A lot of my friends feel the same,” 22-year-old student Judith said after voting on Saint Albans, north of London.
July 04, 2024. 06:08PM (GMT+6)
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has urged voters to re-elect him as a “strong local voice” as he desperately fights to protect his seat.
The Godalming and Ash candidate could be at risk of being hit by a huge Tory wipeout in his race against the Liberal Democrats.
Your strong local voice for Godalming and Ash - VOTE Jeremy Hunt pic.twitter.com/zLSXQYSHWS
— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) July 4, 2024
July 04, 2024. 05:50PM (GMT+6)
Grenfell Protesters Target Polling Station with Powerful Message
Today, Justice4Grenfell staged a protest near a polling station close to Grenfell Tower, where a fire tragically claimed 72 lives shortly after the 2017 general election. Despite subsequent general elections and changes in leadership, with Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak succeeding Theresa May as prime minister, over 150,000 homes still have flammable cladding 7 years later.
The Grenfell inquiry recommendations remain unimplemented, and no prosecutions have been initiated. Organizers strategically placed 72 “Caution, Slippery Politicians” signs within sight of the tower.
July 04, 2024. 05:30PM (GMT+6)
The Winwick polling station is set up in the hallway of the Old School House
For more than 50 years, June Thomas’s home in Winwick, Northamptonshire, has been one of the UK’s quirkiest polling stations.
Voters cast their ballots in a hallway, under a floating staircase.
But Thomas, 80, who has lived at the Old School House in Church Road for 54 years has to travel a little further to cast her vote.
She walks 300 yards to the village post box and mails her vote – and she’s already done so this election.
July 04, 2024. 05:02PM (GMT+6)
While millions of people across the country are heading to the polls, tennis star Emma Raducanu says she will instead opt for a “lie-in” this morning, adding she was unaware the general election was taking place today.
Team name suggestions at the ready...@EmmaRaducanu and @andy_murray will be entering this year's Mixed Doubles Championship as wild cards 🇬🇧#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/ILAdl99y3n
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 3, 2024
July 04, 2024. 04:45PM (GMT+6)
Largest majorities won by single parties at general elections since 1900
The record for the largest majority won by a single party at a general election since 1900 is 210, set in 1924 by the Conservatives. The 1900 election was the first to include the recently-formed Labor Party, alongside the Conservative and Liberal parties, marking the start of the modern political era.
Even larger majorities have been won by coalitions. A three-party National government, mainly Conservatives with small portions of Labor and Liberal parties, won a majority of 242 in the 1935 election.
Four years earlier, in 1931, the same National government won a majority of 492: the biggest-ever parliamentary majority in modern political history.
Furry Friends at Polling Stations
July 04, 2024. 04:27PM (GMT+6)
Davey, who has certainly made a name for himself with his total dedication to eye-catching stunts this campaign, said “It’s a beautiful day. I hope lots of people come out to vote.”
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey votes in Surbiton
July 04, 2024. 04:10PM (GMT+6)
Aldi UK has made a Facebook post featuring a ballot for electing an MP for a fictionary Cake Constituency, writing: “Democracy has never been sweeter #GeneralElection2024”.
The featured parties include “The People’s Party”, “Legally a Different Party”, “The Overpriced Avocado Party”, “The Co-operative Party”, “Clubcard Members Party”, “The Attempted Price Match Party”, and “Just Here for a Good Time Party”.
Aldi UK “democracy has never been sweeter #GeneralElection2024”
July 04, 2024. 04:02PM (GMT+6)
Liz Truss has voted in her South West Norfolk constituency, where she was re-elected with a huge majority of 26,195 in 2019.
Just voted. Polls open until 10pm. #VoteConservative pic.twitter.com/iY0EvmQFx7
— Liz Truss (@trussliz) July 4, 2024
July 04, 2024. 03:55PM (GMT+6)
Corbyn has voted
Just voted for the independent candidate in Islington North.
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) July 4, 2024
I heard he’s alright. pic.twitter.com/xLDltYLSio
Sunak tells voters to “bring ID”
👟 Head to your polling station
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) July 4, 2024
✅ Bring ID
🇬🇧 Vote Conservative
🛑 Stop the Labour supermajority
Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner repeats her party’s “change” mantra
It’s time for change.
— Angela Rayner 🌹 (@AngelaRayner) July 4, 2024
Vote for change today with Labour. 🌹👇🏻 https://t.co/8SFnhxuwuZ
July 04, 2024. 03:50PM (GMT+6)
Plaid Cymru’s leader Rhun ap Iorwerth has posted a video clip of himself after he cast his vote in Ynys Môn.
✅I’ve just voted for @llinos_medi and Plaid Cymru here on Ynys Môn.
— Rhun ap Iorwerth (@RhunapIorwerth) July 4, 2024
Across Wales today, you have the opportunity to vote for Plaid Cymru candidates that will put your community first in Westminster.
Cofiwch fynd â cherdyn adnabod a phleidleisiwch dros @Plaid_Cymru heddiw🏴🏴🏴 pic.twitter.com/28zxwxFAXC
July 04, 2024. 03:40PM (GMT+6)
Keir Starmer has arrived to vote in London with his wife, Victoria.
Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and wife Victoria arrive at a polling station to cast their vote in London, Thursday, July 4, 2024. Voters in the U.K. are casting their ballots in a national election to choose the 650 lawmakers who will sit in Parliament for the next five years. Outgoing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak surprised his own party on May 22 when he called the election. Source: Vadim Ghirda – staff, ASSOCIATED PRESS
July 04, 2024. 03:30PM (GMT+6)
The Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 in London increased by 0.4% to 8,205.46 points shortly after polls opened.
In the eurozone, Paris’s Cotation Assistée en Continu (CAC 40) rose by 0.5% to 7,669.11 points, while Frankfurt’s Deutscher Aktienindex (DAX) climbed 0.2% to 18,417.54 points ahead of France’s upcoming legislative elections this Sunday.
You Can Also Read: Can Labor’s Pro-Business Pivot Win Over Britain?
July 04, 2024. 03:18PM (GMT+6)
First minister of Scotland, John Swinney, has arrived to vote alongside SNP candidate Dave Doogan at the polling place in Blairgowrie, near Perth.
July 04, 2024. 03:07PM (GMT+6)
Robbie Butler is standing for the Ulster Unionist Party in Lagan Valley, where he came third in 2019. He has just posted to say that he hasn’t missed an election since he was 18 and has just cast his vote today.
Haven’t missed a vote since I was 18 and I’ve cast mine this morning.
— Robbie Butler MLA (@RobbieButlerMLA) July 4, 2024
Make sure to have your voice heard and vote for a better #NorthernIreland and #BackButler in #LaganValley for #GE24 pic.twitter.com/nFoy7SbE0i
UK Voting Underway: Behind the Scenes at Polling Stations
All across the UK, polling stations have swung open their doors as voting begins. Here are some images of polling officials putting on the final touches.
July 04, 2024. 02:50PM (GMT+6)
Labor leader Keir Starmer is expected to cast his vote at about 9.30 am, with Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey and Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer both expected to vote – in different places obviously – at about 10.30 am.
July 04, 2024. 02:25PM (GMT+6)
Former Labor party leader Jeremy Corbyn has appealed for people to come out and help his campaign in North Islington as an independent.
We have built this campaign from nothing. We don’t have party machinery. We don’t have big donors. We have something more powerful: people.
— Jeremy Corbyn (@jeremycorbyn) July 4, 2024
Come to our campaign HQ at 89-93 Fonthill Rd to help us Get Out The Vote.
Let’s do this. Vote Independent in Islington North! pic.twitter.com/JUHJgcIhAh
You Can Also Read: As UK Faces Election, What Matters Most to Voters?
July 04, 2024. 02:03PM (GMT+6)
Tim Flynn, a lifetime Labour voter who feels disillusioned by Keir Starmer’s position on the Israel-Palestine conflict, will vote for the Green Party on July 4 [Anealla Safdar/Al Jazeera]
Tim Flynn, a 71-year-old retired psychotherapist, has voted for Labor all his life. But this time, he plans to protest against the party and back his local Green Party candidate.
July 04, 2024. 01:40PM (GMT+6)
- Vaughan Gethinghas said in his clip that “You might not be particularly shocked by this, but I think that you should vote for the Labor”
Today is the day. This is why I think you should vote for the Labour Party. pic.twitter.com/5v69bz7Scy
— Vaughan Gething (@vaughangething) July 4, 2024
- Home secretary James Cleverly has posted a picture of him at Braintree railway station, with the message “Happy polling day to all who celebrate this festival of democracy.”
Happy polling day to all who celebrate this festival of democracy. pic.twitter.com/iCRcwt8eOU
— James Cleverly🇬🇧 (@JamesCleverly) July 4, 2024
- In Northern Ireland, first minister Michelle O’Neillhas asked the country to “return the strongest Sinn Féin team”.
Today, I am asking you to vote Sinn Féin and return the strongest Sinn Féin team.
— Michelle O’Neill (@moneillsf) July 4, 2024
I am asking you to endorse strong leadership, positive change, and our commitment to work for all.
I also urge people to support progressive candidates in constituencies where Sinn Féin is not… pic.twitter.com/4uvsHa5u7a
- Nigel Farage, the recently installed leader of Reform UK, has reposted his party’s party political broadcast featuring him in the Kent countryside with his dog, urging people to “Vote with your heart”.
Polls are now open.
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) July 4, 2024
Vote with your heart. Vote for Reform.
pic.twitter.com/KrnMRolE29
Final Campaign Blitz: What Went Down on the Last Day?
July 04, 2024. 01:20PM (GMT+6)
In a five Cornered contest, a Telegu man with roots in Telangana Uday Nagaraju, vying for the North Bedfordshire parliamentary constituency in today’s UK election.
You Can Also Read: Can Labor’s New Approach Swing the Indian Vote?
July 04, 2024. 12:50PM (GMT+6)
Sunak casts his vote in his Richmond constituency
Rishi Sunak has cast his vote in his Richmond in North Yorkshire. The prime minister hopes to be re-elected in what used to be the safest seat for the Conservatives.
You Can Also Read: UK Election: Cost of Living, Immigration Key Issues for Voters
July 04, 2024. 12:40PM (GMT+6)
Rishi Sunak hasn’t posted to social media since polls opened, but he did post a series of messages in an hourly countdown to “stop the Labour supermajority”, suggesting among other things that Labour intend to raise taxes, scrap exams, demolish the green belt and “tax you just for driving”.
Labour would scrap exams and tax working families by £2094.
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) July 4, 2024
2 hours to stop the Labour supermajority. pic.twitter.com/s9wZOAT5Xr
July 04, 2024. 12:22PM (GMT+6)
Sausage dog at a polling station, so the day is going swimmingly. This is Maggie voting in Wellingborough and Rushden, which was won by Gen Kitchen for Labor in February when she overturned an 18,000 Tory majority.
Maggie voting for her second time in Wellingborough this morning #dogsatpollingstations pic.twitter.com/PhX6llIXNa
— David Muller (@DavidMu30761326) July 4, 2024
Key Candidates Standing in the UK Election
Look at the key candidates who are contesting in the UK General Election
Rishi Sunak - Conservatives
Rishi Sunak (44), Conservatives - An Oxford graduate and former hedge fund manager at Goldman Sachs, he claims to have stabilized Britain's economy post-Brexit. Critics say he lacks political judgment and is out of touch with ordinary voters.
Sir Keir Rodney Starmer - Labor party
Keir Starmer (61), Labor party - A former lawyer and chief prosecutor for England and Wales, Starmer is known as a centrist who shifted the party away from socialism. Labor has surged under his leadership, but critics find him unexciting and unambitious.
Ed Davey - Liberal Democrats
Ed Davey (58), Liberal Democrats - A former economics researcher and climate minister under the Conservative coalition, Davey gained fame for bungee-jumping to encourage voters to take "a leap of faith."
Nigel Farage - Reform UK
Ed Davey (58), Liberal Democrats - A former economics researcher and climate minister under the Conservative coalition, Davey gained fame for bungee-jumping to encourage voters to take "a leap of faith."
John Swinney - Scottish National Party (SNP)
Ed Davey (58), Liberal Democrats - A former economics researcher and climate minister under the Conservative coalition, Davey gained fame for bungee-jumping to encourage voters to take "a leap of faith."
July 04, 2024. 12:05PM (GMT+6)
Labor leader Keir Starmer has put out on social media as polls open in the UK general election. With a significant lead in polling before the day, Starmer is widely expected to become the next UK prime minister.
Change.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) July 4, 2024
Today, you can vote for it.
pic.twitter.com/pLOFU5ijTz
- This is the first time since December 2019 that the whole country has a say on who will sit as MPs in the House of Commons and which party will form the next government.
- Several surveys predict Labor will win more than the record 418 seats it secured when ex-leader Tony Blair ended 18 years of Conservative rule in 1997.
- The latest polling by the major independent data analysis group YouGov shows Labor in the lead by a 17-point margin, with 37% of those polled saying they intend to vote for Labor versus 20% of the public who say they will cast their votes for the Conservatives.
- Labor candidates are projected to win as many as 425 seats in the House of Commons, which would be a massive 223-seat gain for the party.
- The Conservatives are projected to hold onto just 108 seats, which would be a seismic loss of 257 seats.
July 04, 2024. 12:00PM (GMT+6)
Voting Begins in UK Election
Millions will choose new MPs at 40,000 polling stations across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
For the first time in a UK general election, if anyone casting a ballot in person he/she will need to bring a photo ID.
