British PM Rishi Sunak left D-Day memorial early, apologizes after outrage
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologized Friday for leaving D-Day 80th anniversary commemorations early to give a general election interview as he tries to beat Keir Starmer's Labour Party.
LONDON — Eighty years after Winston Churchill helped mastermind the Normandy landings, a British prime minister was under fire Friday for leaving D-Day anniversary events early to return to the campaign trail of an election he looks likely to lose.
Already embattled and unpopular, Rishi Sunak cut short his time with veterans in France to fly back to London for a television interview.
Sunak later apologized for what he said was a "mistake," but not before the decision to head home early saw him assailed by his own allies, as well as his political enemies.
Sunak is fighting for his political life, with his Conservatives trailing the opposition Labour Party by upward of 20 points in some opinion polls ahead of a July 4 national election. If confirmed at the ballot box, this gulf in support would hand the ruling party a defeat so heavy that it could border on annihilation.
Sunak made the decision to call the surprise early vote himself, meaning the D-Day commemorations fell in the heart of the campaign.
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