Exit Poll: Labour Heading For Crushing Election Victory
Exit polls have forecast a large Labour majority, which would end 14 years of Conservative rule. (Alamy)
4 min read
The exit poll has put Keir Starmer's Labour on course for a historic majority at the General Election, in what would be the party's first election victory since 2005.
The result projected by the exit poll:
- Labour 410
- Conservatives 131
- Liberal Democrats 61
- SNP 10
- Reform 13
- Greens 2
Here are the keys seats to follow throughout the night.
As polling stations nationwide closed at 10pm on Thursday, the exit poll published by national broadcasters forecast that Labour is set to be the biggest party in the House of Commons with 410 MPs.
Rishi Sunak's Tories will be a very distant second on 131 MPs, according to the poll — down from the 365 MPs it secured in 2019. It is set to be one of the worst results in the party's history.
Following the poll, Starmer posted on X: "To everyone who has campaigned for Labour in this election, to everyone who voted for us and put their trust in our changed Labour Party - thank you."
Sunak also shared a message on X thanking his supporters: "To the hundreds of Conservative candidates, thousands of volunteers and millions of voters: Thank you for your hard work, thank you for your support, and thank you for your vote."
Exit polls conducted at recent elections have been very close to the actual result.
The landslide win for Labour, which puts the party well over the 326 MP threshold required to form a government, reflects the party's large leads in the polls for the many months leading up to the 4 July General Election.
Elsewhere, in what would be a strong night for Ed Davey's party, the Liberal Democrats are forecast to secure 61 MP. This would make them the largest party in Parliament.
The number of Scottish National Party (SNP) seats projected to fall significantly to just 10 House of Commons seats.
The surprise result of the election looks set to be the numbet of seats won by Nigel Farage's Reform. The right-wing party is forecast to win 13 seats — far more than indicated by opinion polls prior to the election.
Results from around the country will start coming in around midnight and continue throughout Friday morning.
Starmer, who succeeded Jeremy Corbyn as Labour leader in 2020, is set to officially become Prime Minister on Friday.
Responding to the exit poll Pat McFadden, Labour's National Campaign Coordinator, said: "If we are successful tonight, Labour will get to work immediately with our first steps for change.”
“Keir Starmer’s transformation of the Labour Party has been remarkable," said McFadden.
"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.
“It is remarkable that Labour was in a competitive position in this election given what happened in 2019. Whatever has been claimed throughout the campaign, the Labour Party has assumed nothing about the result and has worked tirelessly to bring our message of change to people across the country."
Sunak called the election outside Downing Street unexpectedly on the 22 May, claiming "now is the moment for the country to choose its future". The decision largely took Westminster by surprise, including figures in his own party.
The Prime Minister, who is now preparing to resign on Friday, started the campaign as the heavy underdog and failed to significantly close Labour's massive lead in the polls over the six weeks.
The Conservative party will now brace itself to see if some of its most senior MPs in their most vulnerable seats. The exit poll indicates Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Penny Mordaunt, who was seen as a front runner to succeed Sunak, are likely to lose in their constituencies.
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