UK parliament dissolves ahead of election
The United Kingdom’s parliament dissolved on Thursday ahead of a July 4 general election, which looks set to bring the Labour Party to power after 14 years of Conservative rule.
Five weeks of campaigning officially began as 650 seats of members of parliament (MPs) became vacant at one minute past midnight (local time) in line with the electoral schedule.
The first week of campaigning has seen a shaky start following Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s raindrenched election announcement, with many observers taking the downpour as a bad omen.
Sunak set the election for July 4, instead of later in the year, as had been widely expected, in what observers said was an attempt to regain momentum as his party slides in opinion polls.
After 14 years in opposition, Labour now has the chance to win back power with its leader Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer, at the helm.
Trailing double digits behind Labour in polls, the ruling party also faced a mass exodus of parliamentarians, some throwing in the towel in the face of bleak chances of victory.
Some 129 MPs have so far announced that they will not be standing for reelection. Among them are 77 Conservatives, an unprecedented exodus for a governing party.
Among the Tories standing for reelection, some have made no secret of their annoyance at having been caught off guard by the July election date.
Steve Baker, secretary of state for Northern Ireland, stood by his decision to continue his vacation in Greece, saying that he would be preparing his campaign there.
Signs of infighting also spilled into the open with one Tory MP backing a candidate from the right-wing populist Reform UK Party in her constituency, before being promptly suspended by the Conservatives.
Faltering start
After the election announcement, Sunak traveled across the country, promoting Conservatives as the “safe” option.
His campaign met with some early snags, including a visit to the site where the Titanic was built, drawing comparisons between his leadership and captaining a sinking ship.
Doubling down on older voters and right-wing supporters, Sunak’s campaign has seen pledges to bring back national service and what is billed as a £2.4-billion ($3-billion) tax break for pensioners.
However, Sunak’s week of intense campaigning and bid to surprise the country have done little to boost favor.
Polls put Labour on average at 45 percent of voting intentions, against 23 percent for the Tories, suggesting that, given the simple-majority voting system, Labour will enjoy a very large win.
In a bid to turn things around, Sunak is hoping to win points in the scheduled debates with Keir Starmer, the first of which is set to take place next Tuesday on ITV.