Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, announced a surprise early general election on July 4th. In a May 22 statement from Downing Street, Sunak mentioned that he had conversed with King Charles earlier in the day to ask for the dissolution of Parliament in order to hold a general election.
The public’s sentiment towards Sunak’s government has been declining, with Labour leading the Conservatives by about 20 percentage points in polls. The report stated that after becoming the PM less than two years ago, he has attempted but not succeeded in presenting himself as a reformer, technocrat, and stable leader. The cost-of-living crisis on a global scale has unfortunately cast a shadow over any achievements, the report highlighted.
Therefore, his choice to call for early elections was met with a mixed reaction from members of his party. Some members of the Conservative party think that now is an opportune moment for an election due to possible legal disputes and economic instabilities, but others were surprised by the choice.
Why early elections?
The UK must have a national election by January 2025, and PM Sunak has stated several times that it will happen in the second part of 2024.
Earlier in the day, Sunak revealed that a general election will take place in the latter part of the year in response to a lawmaker’s question about a potential summer vote.
This election will be the first time Sunak, who is 44 years old, will be tested by the voters as the Prime Minister. In October 2022, he was elected as the head of the Conservative Party following an internal vote. This upcoming election will be the third general election following the Brexit referendum in 2016.
Glance at UK’s General Elections
The purpose of the general election is to choose Members of Parliament, also known as MPs, to serve in the House of Commons.
The UK is split into 650 sections known as constituencies, each electing one MP to advocate for local residents in Westminster.
The majority of candidates are affiliated with a political party, while a few run as independents.
Starmer V/S Sunak
Standing down his10 Downing Street in overwhelming rain to declare the decisions, Sunak recorded his accomplishments — both as prime serve and previous fund serve, the report famous.
“Now is the minute for Britain to select its future and choose whether it needs to construct on the advance we have made or chance going back to square one and no certainty. Over the another few weeks, I will battle for each vote, I will win your believe and I will demonstrate to you that as it were a Preservationist government driven by me will not put our difficult earned financial steadiness at chance,” he said.
He too blamed Starmer of, “always taking the simple way out and having no arrange. As a result, long-standing time can as it were be questionable with them”.
In the mean time, Starmer, who has moved Work to the political middle, centered on “alter” in his response, the report said. “On July 4, you (voters) have the choice, and together, we are able halt the chaos, turn the page, begin to revamp Britain, and alter our nation,” the Work pioneer said.
This is what this election is all about 👇 pic.twitter.com/MgPIsPNUPA
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) May 23, 2024
