Vallokala closed at 11 pm Norwegian time. On Thursday, several million Britons had the chance to vote for who they want to be their country’s new prime minister. The result is still a major defeat for the Conservative Party, or Tory, but a smaller loss than the opinion poll on Thursday morning. The survey is provided by Ipsos for the BBC, ITV and Sky News. Keir Starmer, who is likely to become the next Prime Minister of Great Britain, with his wife Victoria outside a polling station in London. Photo: Claudia Greco / Reuters If the number is correct, Labor leader Keir Starmer will become prime minister with almost as large a majority as Tony Blair in 1997. The Tories led by Rishi Sunak are expected to get only 131 out of 650 seats, which will be the lowest figure they have had since the Second World War, writes the BBC. If everything goes according to plan, the final result will be clear during the morning hours. Incumbent Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty cast their votes in Northallerton. Photo: Temilade Adelaja / Reuters Criticism for delayed postal votes Several British media have reported in recent days that the count may be affected by major delays in postal votes. Several thousand Britons claim that they did not receive their ballots in the post before the deadline. On Thursday, The Telegraph wrote that the British post office has brought in extra staff to work on election night to ensure that all postal votes are collected by 11pm Norwegian time. 76 areas in England have registered challenges with postal votes, 12 in Scotland and one in Wales, according to The Telegraph. Photo: Toby Melville / Reuters If they fail to do so, it means that some votes will not be counted. The reasons for this are several, according to the newspaper. It mentions that local authorities have too little time to process applications for postal voting, problems with printers and deliveries by post. – Don’t believe some of them. Since the British media are not allowed to write about any of the election campaigns this day, many of them have posted pictures of cute animals at the polling station instead. A voter whom news meets at one of the premises has come for a walk with his dog. – I think it has been a pretty dirty campaign from some of the parties, he says. – There has been a desperation in the Conservative Party which has caused them to hide or bend the truth, I would say. An elderly woman who is also present says that the election this year has been “ridiculously difficult”. – I don’t trust some of them, I’m afraid, she says to news, and wants to keep secret who she has voted for. – As far as I understand, politicians say what you want to hear, but do not follow through. None of them are very good, so my vote is a dissenting vote. This voter, like many others, has lost faith in all the politicians participating in the election campaign. Photo: Håvard Blekastad Almås / news A big change of era Øivind Bratberg, senior lecturer at the Department of Political Science at the University of Oslo, believes that today’s election is the strangest that has been held in a long time. – One assumes that it will be a big change of era, and at the same time there is a very calm and almost imperial atmosphere around the whole thing, he says to news Statsvitar Øivind Bratberg has written a book about British prime ministers throughout history. Photo: Vidar Ruud / NTB scanpix – By all accounts, the sum is a solid majority for a party and an incoming government that has a very careful plan. Many believe this election is more about the party that is on its way out, says Bratberg. – One has had enough of the conservative government over the course of 14 years, with a collection of measures and proposals that they have not succeeded in implementing. – They have built up so much distrust over time that it has now come to an end. Many people in Great Britain do not follow the news, and are rent by their politicians. Listen to the podcast from Urix: Published 04/07/2024, at 23.01 Updated 04.07.2024, at 23.06
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