December 13, 2019, 11:41 AM
The UK Conservative Party under Prime Minister Boris Johnson looks set to retain power in a landslide victory.
Earlier this morning, Singapore time, the exit poll for the BBC, ITV and Sky News predicted that the Conservatives would win 368 seats in the House of Commons.
It also predicted 191 seats for Labour, 55 seats for the Scottish National Party (SNP) and 13 for the Lib Dems.
With 650 seats in total, this would be enough to allow the Conservatives to form a majority government.
The poll also predicts that they will have a majority of 86 MPs.
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - DECEMBER 12: Prime Minister Boris Johnson poses outside Methodist Hall polling station as he casts his vote with dog Dilyn, on December 12, 2019 in London, England. The current Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the first UK winter election for nearly a century in an attempt to gain a working majority to break the parliamentary deadlock over Brexit. The election results from across the country are being counted overnight and an overall result is expected in the early hours of Friday morning. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
Pound surges against dollar
World markets reacted to the poll, as the British pound surged to its highest value against the U.S. dollar (US$1.35) since May 2018, according to the BBC.
Capital Economics' chief UK economist Paul Dales said the rising pound was due to clarity over Brexit, as Johnson has promised to take the UK out of the European Union with a deal by Jan. 31, 2020.
There was also the perception that Labour would implement "anti-business policies" if they had taken power.
Labour lost traditional strongholds
Early results set the tone, with longtime Labour seats falling into the hands of the Conservatives.
The constituency of Blyth Valley in Northumberland, which has never been represented by a Conservative MP since its creation in 1950, announced that the Labour candidate had lost, according to the Express.
Other Labour strongholds in Darlington, Workington and Clywd South in Wales also elected Conservative MPs, according to The Guardian.
If the poll is accurate, this would be the Conservatives' biggest win since Margaret Thatcher's third successive victory in 1987.
It would also represent Labour's worst result in a general election since 1935.
— Conservatives (@Conservatives) December 12, 2019
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Top image from Leon Neal via Getty Images.
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