Britain’s PM Sunak has declared an early general election for 4th July 2024

Rishi Sunak unexpectedly called a UK general election for July 4th, seeking a Conservative fifth term despite Labour's poll lead, sparking questions over his motives.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared in a surprising statement today that the UK general election will take place on the 4th of July. The early election call was quite unexpected, as an autumn election had been expected which may have favored the ruling Conservatives against the Labour Party opposition.

Speaking in the rain at number 10 Downing Street, Sunak pledged to ‘contest every vote as he looks to secure another victory for his party. He attributed this to the recently released inflation statistics that indicated the rate of inflation at its lowest in nearly three years as evidence that the plan and priorities that he outlined are paying off after a phase of volatility in the economy.

Labour leader Keir Starmer countered, saying it is time for a change from the Tories stating they have caused significant harm to the economy and public services over the years. He said that “Britain deserves better” and only Labour can offer stability in political leadership.

Other leaders of the parties did not take time to set the electoral choices, where the SNP’s John Swinney said that it was an opportunity to ‘throw out the Tory government’, Liberal Democrat Ed Davey pledged to ‘boot out’ Sunak’s ‘disgraceful’ regime and Reform UK as the ‘real change’.

The dissolution of Parliament will now follow shortly, marking an official five-week campaign period before the first July general election since 1945. It will be conducted with new constituencies and include voter identification for the first time.

What is still unknown is why Sunak decided to go for the summer poll instead of the autumn one, which was believed to be an optimal time to get back as much lost economy as possible. A few Tories criticized the strategy, while at least one minister was uncomfortable with the Prime Minister’s speech visuals as they undermined his desired economic position.

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Britain’s political instability that has been witnessed in the recent past appears set to continue with another campaign about to start in an environment that is still rather unclear and with an uncertain result.