Labour records 'thumping victory,' snatches Blackpool South parliamentary seat from Sunak's Conservatives
Labour candidate Chris Webb
In Britain, embattled Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing more pressure on Friday (May 3) as his party lost another parliamentary seat to the main opposition Labour, which is making gains in the just-concluded elections that had several local body positions up for grabs.
Labour has seized the parliamentary constituency of Blackpool South from the Tories, in the latest by-election defeat for the British ruling party.
Labour candidate Chris Webb registered a massive victory and bagged the parliamentary seat with 10,825 votes. The Conservative candidate David Jones came in second place with less than 50 per cent of Webb's votes at 3,218.
As per AFP, the loss of the constituency in the northwest of England appears to be just one defeat for Tories, who appear to be on course to lose the upcoming general elections too.
In another major setback,Labour’s David Skaith emerged victorious in the York and North Yorkshire mayoral election, securing victory in the prime minister’s own backyard.Skaith gathered almost a third of total votes. This is seen as a major jolt to PM Sunak as the seat is considered a Conservative stronghold.
A scandal and a vote
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As per the report, the vote in Blackpool South was triggered by a lobbying scandal that saw the 2019-elected Conservative MP Scott Benton resign.
On Thursday, over 2,000 seats were up for grabs in local elections that also saw some high-profile mayoral contestsincluding UK capital London, besides the parliamentary seat of Blackpool South.
According to Reuters, the "thumping victory" in Blackpool South "set the tone" for what it says are set to be a closely watched two days of results ahead of a full national election later this year.
'Seismic win'
Polls show that this year's elections could be the end of 14 years of Conservative government, as Labour Leader Keir Starmer appears to be the popular choice.
Applauding the victory, Starmer in a statement said, "This seismic win in Blackpool South is the most important result today."
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"This is the one contest where voters had the chance to send a message to Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives directly, and that message is an overwhelming vote for change," Starmer said.
Most opinion polls show Sunak's Torieslagging 20 points behind Labour.
Sunak is expected to call for a National Election in the second half of this year.
(With inputs from agencies)
