Britain's main opposition Labour party looks set for a landslide election win, exit polls indicated on Thursday, with Keir Starmer replacing Rishi Sunak as prime minister, ending 14 years of Conservative rule.
The survey for UK broadcasters suggested centre-left Labour would win 410 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons, putting it back in power for the first time since 2010, with a 170-seat majority.
Sunak's Tories would only get 131 -- a record low -- with the right-wing vote apparently spliced by Nigel Farage's anti-immigration Reform UK party, which could bag 13 seats.
In another boost for the centrists, the smaller opposition Liberal Democrats would get 61 seats, ousting the Scottish National Party on 10 as the third biggest party.
The projected overall result bucks a rightward trend among Britain's closest Western allies, with the far-right in France eyeing power and Donald Trump looking set for a return in the United States.
British newspapers all focused on Labour's impending return to power for the first time since the days of Gordon Brown in 2010.
"Keir We Go," headlined the Labour-supporting Daily Mirror. "Britain sees red," said The Sun, the influential Rupert Murdoch tabloid which swung behind Labour for the first time since 2005.
Both Starmer and Sunak thanked activists for their work and support during the election campaign but senior Labour figures refrained from any premature celebrations.
Bd pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
