Labour Party wins U.K. general election, defeating Sunak-led Conservatives

Britain woke up to a new political era, with the opposition Labour Party headed for a win to oust the Conservative Party after 14 years in power.

LONDON — Britain woke Friday to the scene of a political earthquake. The opposition Labour Party, after 14 years in the political wilderness, has handed a brutal defeat to the ruling Conservatives.

In his first speech outside his new home at number 10 Downing Street, the country's new Prime Minister Keir Starmer said people had voted “decisively for change” and the country could “move forward together.”

“When the gap between the sacrifices made by people and the service they receive from politicians grows this big, it leads to a weariness in the heart of a nation, a draining away of the hope, the spirit, the belief in a better future,” he said as his party took power after more than a decade in opposition. “But we need to move forward together. Now this wound, this lack of trust can only be healed by actions not words, I know that.”

He added that the U.K. could “make a start today with the simple acknowledgement that public service is a privilege and that your government should treat every single person in this country with respect.”

Follow live updates on the U.K. election results

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/labour-party-wins-uk-general-election-rcna160335

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