Sir Keir Starmer is poised to complete one of the most remarkable turnarounds in British political history as the exit poll indicates a huge Labour victory that will sweep him into Downing Street with a majority of 170.
As polling stations closed at 10pm the exit poll predicted that Labour will win 410 seats, Tories 131, Lib Dems 61, Reform 13 and SNP 10.
It is a stunning reversal in fortunes since the Tories won an 80-seat majority under Boris Johnson just under five years ago, in what was also Labour’s worst election result since 1935.
The 131 seats projected for the the Tories is a record low in their 346-year history beating the previous 156 in 1906.
If the exit poll is prooven right then Nigel Farage is set to be a big winner taking his Reform UK party to 13 seats at their first attempt.
His last minute decision to stand in Clacton appears to be fully vindicated and have propelled his party into Parliament ending his own run of seven defeats on attempts to get elected.
Meanwhile, the SNP’s support appears to have collapsed in Scotland with 10 seats representing a loss of 35 seats.
The SNP will have lost out to the Labour Party surge which Lord Mandelson told the BBC was “much bigger” than Tony Blair’s victory in 1997.
He pointed out that when Blair won the party had been slowly “on an upward trajectory” in 1987 and 1992 but this victory will have come after a near collapse under Jeremy Corbyn in 2019.
Pat McFadden, Labour’s National Campaign Coordinator, commenting on close of polls, said: “Keir Starmer’s transformation of the Labour Party has been remarkable. He has put country before party and has transformed Labour from a party focused on itself to one back in the service of the British public. We have campaigned as a changed Labour Party, ready to change Britain.
“It’s going to be a long night, and it will be several hours until we know the full picture of results. Labour will need a swing bigger than Tony Blair achieved in 1997 to achieve a majority of just one seat.”
But after millions defied predictions of massive voter apathy and went out to vote, the British people have delivered a devastating verdict on the Tory government over the last five years.
With three different prime ministers, rows over Brexit, the Partygate scandal, Liz Truss’s disastrous mini-Budget and years of civil war and internal bickering, the Conservatives’ 14-year period in government has come to a crushing end.
The exit poll suggests that the prime minister himself could be one of a number of senior Tories nervously awaiting results tonight with their seats under threat.
If there are more than seven cabinet casualties it will be a new record. Other records which could be broken are the all-time lowest number of Tory seats of 156 in 1906 and Tony Blair’s 1997 majority of 179.
Mr Sunak, who announced the snap election in the rain while being heckled with D:Ream’s Things Can Only Get Better, has insisted that he is “proud” of his election campaign despite many claiming it has been one of the worst in history.
![How it began: Rishi Sunak calls the election in the middle of a rain storm on May 22 (Stefan Rousseau/PA)](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/07/04/15/4fcf6569b99c167ff75a0ef549739410Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzIwMTA1NzIz-2.76283869.jpg)
Warnings of a “Labour supermajority” and claims of a £2,000 tax hike for each home – which was disowned by the Treasury – were designed to scare Tory voters planning to stay at home or support Nigel Farage’s Reform UK.
But the tactics seemed to have failed despite a better-than-expected turnout reported up and down the country, with the good weather contributing to people going to the polls and queuing to vote.
Sources have already told The Independent that the high turnout is mainly because “people want to punish the Conservatives” and there are predictions of a wipeout result which could leave the Tories on less than 100 seats.
Mr Sunak’s decision to leave the D-Day commemorations early during the campaign and the gambling scandal involving members of his inner circle have all meant he has struggled to close the gap with Labour.
Meanwhile Mr Farage’s decision to stand for Reform UK in Clacton saw a surge in support for the right-wing party, and he now looks set to win a parliamentary seat at the eighth attempt.
Ahead of polling day Mr Sunak told supporters that he will “fight to the end” and “is used to being an underdog”.
But his final throw of the dice, bringing back disgraced former prime minister Boris Johnson to a campaign rally, appears to have failed to turn around his party’s fortunes with scores of MPs set to lose their seats after 75 Tories already said they would not stand.
Sir Keir’s final message to voters linked to his decision to throw out his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn.
He said: “I’ve changed the Labour Party. If you put your trust in me by voting Labour, I will change the country. “
Mr Farage, who has pushed hard on immigration and Mr Sunak’s failure to stop the small boats in the Channel, appealed to voters to “vote with your heart, vote for Reform.”
Earlier in the day he mocked Mr Sunak: “Time to hit the panic button.”
More follows on this breaking news story….