UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak suffers 2 big defeats in UK special election : NPR

Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, centre, and newly elected Conservative MP Steve Tuckwell, centre-right, speak at the Rumbling Tum cafe in Uxbridge, after Tuckwell won the by-election in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, west London, Friday July 21, 2023.

Carl Court/AP

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Carl Court/AP

Britain’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, centre, and newly elected Conservative MP Steve Tuckwell, centre-right, speak at the Rumbling Tum cafe in Uxbridge, after Tuckwell won the by-election in Uxbridge and South Ruislip, west London, Friday July 21, 2023.

Carl Court/AP

LONDON Britain’s ruling Conservative Party suffered two resounding defeats in a trio of special elections on Friday but avoided a beating after retaining former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s seat in suburban London.

Although the main opposition Labor and smaller center Liberal Democrats overturned huge Tory majorities to win a seat each, the Tories found some crumbs of solace in their meager success in Uxbridge and South Ruislip in west London.

Yet Thursday’s election results, if replicated in a likely general election next year, would certainly see Labor emerge as the largest single party, perhaps with a sizable overall majority. Despite retaining Johnson’s former seat by just 495 votes, all three election results show the Tories losing ground across a wide range of voters: residents of London suburbs, residents of small towns in northern England and rural residents of the South West.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak went straight to the scene of his party’s only electoral success and noted that governments often find midterm elections difficult.

“The message I take away is that we have to double down, stick to our plan and deliver for the people,” he said at a cafe in Ruislip.

Labor leader Keir Starmer is also traveling to Selby and Ainsty in northern England, where 25-year-old candidate Keir Mather managed to secure the party’s second biggest swing in a special election since 1945.

“It’s a historic result that shows people are looking at Labor and seeing a changed party that is fully focused on working people’s priorities with an ambitious and practical plan to deliver,” Starmer said after the result was announced.

Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats have taken Somerton and Frome in the South West of England in an equally significant move away from the Tories.

“The people of Somerton and Frome have spoken on behalf of the rest of the country which is fed up with Rishi Sunak’s disconnected Conservative government,” said Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey.

What is clear about these two elections is that voters from both opposition parties clearly supported the party most likely to defeat the Conservative candidate. Faced with this level of tactical voting, the defeats will likely leave many conservative lawmakers shaken ahead of the likely national vote next year.

Defeats do not mean a change of government, since the Conservatives still have a large majority in the House of Commons.

For months, polls have given Labor a double-digit lead, sometimes as much as 20% nationally, over the Conservatives, in power since 2010.

The party has been plagued by the fallout from the tumultuous tenures of Johnson and his successor as prime minister, Liz Truss, who resigned weeks after his plan for unfunded tax cuts alarmed financial markets, deepening a cost-of-living crisis and seeing mortgage costs soar.

Johnson, who resigned as prime minister last September, quit parliament last month after being accused of misleading the House of Commons over his statements regarding lockdown breaches. The former Selby lawmaker, an ally of Johnson, followed him out the door while the MP for Somerton and Frome resigned amid sex and drugs allegations.

In light of these deadly defeats, there is speculation that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is due to call a general election by January 2025, could seek to shake up his government with a cabinet reshuffle as early as Friday.

As Sunak ponders his options, much of the spotlight will turn to Labor leader Starmer, who has been cautious in outlining his plans for government.

The party’s failure to secure victory in Johnson’s former seat will likely raise concerns over London Mayor Sadiq Khan’s plans to extend an anti-pollution zone to all of the capital’s outer boroughs, a move that will see many older diesel cars and vehicles face a daily emissions charge.