London: Boris Johnson’s gamble on early elections paid off as voters gave the UK prime minister a commanding majority to take the country out of the European Union by the end of January, a decisive result after more than three years of stalemate over Brexit.
Johnson’s promise to “get Brexit done” and widespread unease with opposition leader Jere-my Corbyn’s leadership style and socialist policies combined to give the ruling Conservative Party 365 seats in the House of Commons, its best performance since party icon Margaret Thatcher’s last victory in 1987. Corbyn’s Labour Party slumped to 203 seats, 59 fewer than it won two years ago, vote totals showed on Friday.
The results offer Johnson a new mandate to push his EU withdrawal agreement thro-ugh Parliament. Since taking office in July, he had led a minority government and, after the House of Commons stalled his Brexit deal at the end of October, he called the election two years ahead of schedule in hopes of winning a clear majority.
“I will put an end to all that nonsense, and we will get Brexit done on time by the January 31 — no ifs, no buts, no maybes,” he said as supporters cheered. Leav-ing the European Union as one United Kingdom, taking back control of our laws, borders, money, our trade, immigration system, delivering on the democratic mandate of the people.”
The scale of Johnson’s success also marked a stinging defeat for Corbyn, who had promised to lead Labour to victory with the “big-gest people-powered ca-mpaign our country has ever seen.”
Instead, voters rejected his attempt to bridge divisions over Brexit by promising a second referendum on any deal with the EU. The vote also turned away the rest of the party’s agenda.
