About our UK General Election news
Latest UK General Election news, providing comprehensive coverage of general elections in the UK. The last UK GE came in July 2024 and resulted in a Labour landslide victory with Keir Starmer becoming the PM,.
The 2024 United Kingdom general election, held on 4 July, resulted in a landslide victory for the Labour Party led by Sir Keir Starmer. Labour won 411 seats, securing a 174-seat majority in the House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by incumbent Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, suffered its worst defeat in modern history, winning only 121 seats.
Keir Starmer was sworn in as Prime Minister on 5 July, ending 14 years of Conservative rule. In his first speech as PM, Starmer pledged to "restore service and respect to politics" and unite the country. The Liberal Democrats had their best-ever result, winning 72 seats and becoming the third-largest party. Other notable outcomes included Reform UK winning 5 seats, with party leader Nigel Farage elected as an MP for the first time.
The election saw several dramatic local stories, including independent candidates defeating Labour in some areas with large Muslim populations, attributed to Labour's stance on the Israel-Hamas war. Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, running as an independent, retained his Islington North seat. The Scottish National Party suffered significant losses to Scottish Labour, while in Northern Ireland, Sinn Féin became the largest party.
This election marked several firsts, including being the first general election held in July since 1945 and the first to use new constituency boundaries implemented after the 2023 Periodic Review. It was also the first UK general election to require photo ID for in-person voting in Great Britain. The campaign was dominated by issues such as the economy, healthcare, education, and immigration.