I’ll be the first to admit it, my predictions were 100% wrong– and it’s not hard to see why.
With the results of the UK’s general election in save one seat (that’s fine Cornwall, take your time), the Tories have a comfortable majority in Parliament with 264 MPs. It’s the largest majority they’ve had since Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister.
This should tell us a lot.
I’d anticipated that UK voters would be disillusioned with the viability of Brexit, after three years of failed negotiations. What they really seem to have been disillusioned with is a split Parliament that had just enough votes among the opposition to block any deal or decision regarding Brexit. I think a lot of us were also misled by a left-leaning media that wanted to ignore or misconstrue any sort of progress or success from the right-wing party in power.
Wait. . . Why does this sound so familiar?
Regardless of how you feel about the Tory victory or what it means for the UK’s relationship with the EU, there is some good news all around: Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, said he will step down from his post in the way only a sore-loser weenie can:
Jeremy Corbyn said he would not fight another election as Labour leader, amid recriminations over the party’s defeat.
He said he was “very sad” about the result, adding that he had received “more personal abuse” from the media during the campaign than any previous prime ministerial candidate.
Boo hoo, Jer Bear. Do your job better next time and then maybe people won’t hurt your feelings so much.
In any case, US elections have been following the precedent of the UK recently, so perhaps we’re seeing a harbinger of success for the Republicans in 2020.