Labor MP Simon Lightwood won the Wakefield seat in West Yorkshire, in the north of England, with a 4,925 majority in a 12.7 percentage point swing from Conservatives to Labor.
Moments later, Liberal Democrat Richard Foord won the Tiverton and Honiton by-elections in Devon, in the west of England, with a spectacular swing of almost 30 points. The Conservatives had taken the seat with a majority of more than 24,000 votes, making the victory one of the largest majorities to be annulled in a UK by-election.
Helen Hurford, the defeated Conservative Party candidate, had locked herself in a room previously reserved for media interviews at the counting site and reportedly refused to speak to any media outlet, PA Media reported.
Speaking to Tiverton, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey urged the ruling Conservative Party to oust its leader, saying “Boris Johnson must leave,” PA Media reported.
“The only people who can show the door to Boris Johnson are their own party,” he said, adding, “If you continue to allow Boris Johnson to go without any plan for our country, the Liberal Democrats will come after you.” seat by seat “.
Johnson said the UK government must “listen to the results” of the overwhelming by-elections, which led to Conservative Party President Oliver Dowden resigning.
Speaking during a joint interview during a visit to Rwanda, Johnson described the results as “tough” as a “reflection of many things”, and acknowledged that British voters are “going through a difficult time right now”.
“As a government, I have to listen to what people say. And the difficulties that people face in terms of the cost of living, which I think, for most people, is the problem. number one, “Johnson remarked.
Thursday’s by-election was triggered by the high-profile resignations of Conservative lawmakers – one who admitted to having seen porn in the UK parliament chamber and another found guilty of sexually abusing a teenager.
The results are significant – and deeply troubling to the Conservative Party in government – for two reasons. The defeat of Tiverton and Honiton means that many previously safe seats in the south and west of England could be at risk in the next general election. Wakefield’s result suggests Labor could regain many of the so-called Red Wall seats that passed Johnson’s party in the 2019 election.
Friday’s defeats come in the wake of the Partygate damaging scandal in which blockade events took place on Downing Street and a vote of confidence in Johnson’s leadership earlier this month where more than 41% of lawmakers of their own party voted to get rid of him. .
Johnson has faced many other scandals that have affected his position in the polls, despite his 80-seat victory just two and a half years ago. These include allegations of using donors’ money inappropriately to pay for a renovation of their Downing Street home and flogging lawmakers to protect a colleague who had breached lobbying rules.
Few tools in the box
If these scandals, often dismissed by government ministers as stories of the “Westminster bubble,” were the only concerns of the British, Johnson might not be in such serious trouble. But perhaps the biggest problem the prime minister faces is one that is, to some extent, out of his hands.
The cost of living crisis is on the rise and the government has few tools in its coffers to make things easier for British citizens. There have been bonuses and energy subsidies to help those most affected, but given the pace of inflation, they are largely unable to address the magnitude of the problems.
Just this week, the country fought the worst rail strike in 30 years. Unions and opposition politicians point the finger directly at Johnson for refusing to negotiate with the unions.
Johnson’s allies will likely spend the next few days declaring that he is the only person who can change everything and return the party to a winning position before the next general election, currently scheduled for 2024.
That could be true. But it may also be true that the public has decided on it. Where before, many admired him as the “Who Made Brexit” man, as his campaign posters boasted, he could now be another regular politician for much of the public.
Johnson is out of the country over the weekend, attending Commonwealth, G7 and NATO summits in Rwanda, Germany and Spain. It’s usually when the leader is out of the country that Westminster’s biggest conspirators do their best job. And there are a significant number of conservatives who think Johnson is dragging the party into oblivion and it will cost them work and power.
He has already faced a vote of confidence. He could very well face another before the end of the year. But the question some Conservative MPs are quietly asking is: has the Johnson administration burned the earth? Is there anyone who can change the brand of the match, as Johnson did in 2019, and lead a renewed match to another victory?
Unless early elections are called, the Conservatives will be in power for 14 years when they ask the public to grant them five more. At that time they will have had three very different leaders who were, it was thought at the time, the best people for the job.
If the country still has the feeling that it is going backwards, it will be very difficult for Johnson, or for any other conservative, to argue that they are the people to push it forward and keep their face straight.
CNN’s Niamh Kennedy contributed to this report.