Keir Starmer Elected UK Prime Minister As Labour Party Wipes Out Conservatives in Landslide Victory

The Labour Party secured a historic landslide victory in the UK general election, catapulting party leader and long-time Arsenal supporter Keir Starmer to the prime minister’s office and ending 14 years of Conservative government.

This seismic shift in British politics , reminiscent in scale to former Prime Minister Tony Blair’s triumph in 1997, sees Labour winning a massive majority in the House of Commons. With almost all the results in, Labour had won 411 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons and the Conservatives 120.

Starmer, a 61-year-old former human rights lawyer, will be appointed Prime Minister by King Charles III at Buckingham Palace on Friday. At a jubilant rally in London, Starmer declared: “We did it! The sunshine of hope is returning to our great country.” He heralded an “age of national renewal.”

Outgoing Prime Minister Rishi Sunak conceded defeat in the early hours of Friday morning, acknowledging the British public’s decisive verdict.

“The Labour Party has won this election,” Sunak said. “The British people have delivered a sobering verdict and I take responsibility for the loss.”

He added: “Today, power will change hands in a peaceful and orderly manner, with goodwill on all sides. That is something that should give us all confidence in our country’s stability and future.”

This victory for Labour bucks the trend seen across other Western economies where center-left parties have struggled against a rising tide of right-wing populism. In France, Italy, and Germany, parties on the right have made significant inroads, a trend many believed could be mirrored in the UK by former President Donald Trump’s ally and Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party.

Reform UK only gained four seats but the election did see Farage win his first seat in the House of Commons as his party claimed millions of votes, largely at the expense of the Conservatives.

The Conservative Party, which faces its worst defeat in history, lost key figures and several traditional strongholds. High profile Conservative casualties included former Prime Ministers Liz Truss and Jacob Rees-Mogg , all losing seats to Labour.

Eight members of Sunak’s cabinet also lost seats, including Defense Secretary Grant Shapps and Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt were among the high-profile casualties.

The election has also heralded a small revival for the Liberal Democrats, projected to secure 56 seats, and marked a dramatic collapse for Scotland’s independence movement as the Scottish National Party, which is forecasted to win just eight seats compared to 48 in 2019.

While Labour celebrates, internal challenges remain. Starmer faced criticism for his stance on Gaza, costing the party three seats in key urban areas taken by independents running on pro-Palestinian tickets. Notably, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn retained his seat as an independent.