LONDON (AP) 鈥� British voters are picking a new government Thursday in a that is widely expected to bring the Labour Party to power against a gloomy backdrop of , mounting distrust in institutions and a fraying social fabric.
A is delivering its verdict on Conservative Party, which has been in power since 2010. Polls opened at 7 a.m.
Sunak made the short journey from his home to vote at Kirby Sigston Village Hall in his Richmond constituency. He arrived with his wife, Akshata Murty, and walked hand-in-hand into the village hall, which is surrounded by rolling fields.
The center-left Labour Party led by has had a steady and significant lead in opinion polls for months, but its leaders have warned against taking the election result for granted, worried their supporters will stay home.
"Change. Today, you can vote for it,鈥� he wrote Thursday on the X social media platform.
The Conservatives have acknowledged that Labour appears headed for victory and urged voters not to hand the party a 鈥渟upermajority.鈥�
In the Sunak insisted 鈥渢he outcome of this election is not a foregone conclusion.鈥�
But in a message to voters on Wednesday, Sunak said that 鈥渋f the polls are to be believed, the country could wake up tomorrow to a Labour supermajority ready to wield their unchecked power.鈥� He urged voters to back the Conservatives to limit Labour's power.
Labour has not set pulses racing with its pledges to get the sluggish economy growing, invest in infrastructure and make Britain a 鈥渃lean energy superpower.鈥�
But nothing has really gone wrong in its campaign, either. The party has won the support of large chunks of the business community and endorsements from traditionally conservative newspapers, including the Rupert Murdoch-owned Sun tabloid.
The Sun said in an editorial that "by dragging his party back to the center ground of British politics for the first time since Tony Blair was in No. 10 (Downing St.), Sir Keir has won the right to take charge,鈥� using the formal title for Starmer, who was knighted.
Former Labour candidate Douglas Beattie, author of the book 鈥淗ow Labour Wins (and Why it Loses),鈥� said Starmer's 鈥渜uiet stability probably chimes with the mood of the country right now.鈥�
The Conservatives, meanwhile, have been plagued by gaffes. The campaign got off to an inauspicious start when rain drenched Sunak as he outside 10 Downing St. Then, Sunak from commemorations in France marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion.
Several Conservatives close to Sunak are 小蓝视频 investigated over suspicions they used inside information to on the date of the election before it was announced.
It has all made it harder for Sunak to shake off the taint of political chaos and mismanagement that鈥檚 gathered around the Conservatives since then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Johnson鈥檚 successor, Liz Truss, rocked the economy with a package of drastic tax cuts and lasted just 49 days in office. There is widespread dissatisfaction over a host of issues, from a creaking public to .
But for many voters, the applies not just to Conservatives, but to politicians in general. Veteran rouser of the right, , has leaped into that breach and grabbed attention with his anti-immigration rhetoric.
The centrist and environmentalist also want to sweep up disaffected voters.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know who鈥檚 for me as a working person,鈥� said Michelle Bird, a port worker in 小蓝视频ampton on England鈥檚 south coast who was undecided about whether to vote Labour or Conservative. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know whether it鈥檚 the devil you know or the devil you don鈥檛.鈥�
Jill Lawless, The Associated Press
