U.K. Conservative Party suffers severe losses in parliamentary byelections

U.K. Conservative Party suffers severe losses in parliamentary byelections

The U.K. Conservative Party suffered significant losses in two of three parliamentary byelections on Thursday, in what is being seen by some as a strong indicator of their prospects in next year’s general election.

The Tories lost to Labour by a sizeable margin in the northern England constituency of Selby and Ainsy, and to the Liberal Democrats (Lib Dems) in the Conservative stronghold of Somerton and Frome. They managed to retain former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s seat in the west London area of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, but with a reduced majority.

Labour secured a record win in Selby, with twenty-five-year-old Keir Mather ousting them after winning by a margin of over 4,100 votes or 46% of the vote share (versus the Conservatives’ 34.3%). The newly minted youngest MP, who is a former parliamentary researcher and public relations adviser, ran a campaign focused on the cost of living crisis facing the country.

In the Somerton area in England’s South West, the Lib Dems’ Sarah Dyke won a majority of over 11,000, taking a Conservative seat — a 29% swing away from the Tories.

Local councillor Seve Tuckwell won a recount in Uxbridge by a 495-vote majority. Former Prime Minister Johson had held the Uxbridge and South Ruislip seat for eight years before resigning last month, after a parliamentary committee found that he lied to Parliament and was about to suspend him. Following his resignation, his colleague Nigel Adams, representing Selby, also resigned.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak defended his party’s performance and pushed back against the idea that his party was heading for a defeat next year. His party is trailing labour in opinion polls, with the country reeling from high levels of inflation, dissatisfaction over public sector pay, rising interest and mortgage rates, problems with public services, specifically in the National Health Service (NHS).