Britain’s ruling Conservatives experienced a setback on Friday as the main Labour opposition claimed victory in a parliamentary seat, with the country anticipating local election outcomes that could further challenge embattled leader Rishi Sunak.
Labour secured the constituency of Blackpool South, located in northwest England, marking another by-election defeat for the Tories and raising doubts about their prospects in the upcoming general election.
The by-election, triggered by a lobbying scandal leading to the resignation of the area’s Conservative MP, coincided with voters casting ballots in a variety of council, mayoral, and local contests across England on Thursday.
Labour’s Chris Webb emerged victorious with a 26.3 percent swing — the third-largest margin from Conservatives to Labour at a by-election since World War II.
Labour leader Keir Starmer hailed the win in Blackpool South as “seismic,” positioning himself as Britain’s next prime minister.
The local elections serve as the final major test at the ballot box before Sunak faces a nationwide vote expected in the second half of the year.
The ruling Tories, in power nationally since 2010 and defending hundreds of seats won during the last local elections in 2021, are anticipated to suffer significant losses.
While early results indicated Labour gains in council seats, attention was focused on key regional and London mayor races, the results of which were expected later on Friday and Saturday.
London’s Labour mayor, Sadiq Khan, is projected to secure a record third term easily, while mayoral contests in the West Midlands and Tees Valley are anticipated to be closely contested.
A victory for Labour in these regions, which house pivotal constituencies, would signal a readiness among voters to reinstall the party in power nationally.
Speculation abounds in the UK parliament that a poor electoral showing could prompt some discontented Tory lawmakers to seek Sunak’s replacement, who has been at the helm since October 2022.
Wins for the incumbent Tory mayors in the West Midlands and Tees Valley would bolster hopes that Sunak can rejuvenate their fortunes, although they have distanced themselves from the party during the campaign.
Pollsters predict that the Conservatives could lose approximately half of the nearly 1,000 council seats they are defending across England.
Of concern for Sunak, the Conservatives only managed to secure second place in Blackpool South, ahead of the fringe Reform UK party, which poses a threat to the right-wing vote in the general election.
