Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party won an impressive victory on Thursday, which might end the Brexit uncertainty that has lasted for about three years.
The Conservatives were on 43.6% or 365 seats, while the opposition Labour Party got 32.2%, securing only 203 seats.
The results shocked everyone, especially after a series of polls had shown that Johnson’s lead was narrowing in the last two weeks. Many economists even expected a hung parliament and feared that the Brexit chaos would last for more years to come.
Nevertheless, the PM was right to call for an early election even though it was risky. Johnson sought for the December national poll to break the Brexit deadlock after the UK Parliament blocked his proposals multiple times, even humiliating him to ask the European Union for another deadline extension beyond October 31. Previously, he had pledged never to do so.
On Thursday, Johnson was victorious, while the Labour Party saw the biggest lost since 1935. Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn announced that he would step down.
The PM’s task now is to “get Brexit done,” as he promised in the election campaign. Johnson told supporters on Friday:
“We will get Brexit
done on time by the 31st of January, no ifs, no buts, no maybes.”
The pound surged against all majors, showing one of the biggest daily gains in the last 20 years.