The Labour Party era is finally coming to an end in Britain after eleven years in power. The recent heir to the Labour mantle, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, saw his party reeling in defeat in London’s local elections.
They didn’t even finish second. The Conservative “Tories” were first, followed by the Liberal Democrats. Labour was third in an embarrassing collapse of support. British newspapers are labeling the defeat “Black Friday” and a “bloodbath.”
The catalyst for the sudden collapse of Labour support was the credit crunch. The proletariat plebes on this side of the Atlantic who blame George Bush for the economy have rabble cousins in Old Europe who blame their government for the same thing.
The result? A route which has not been witnessed in England for a generation. Long-time liberal incumbents were tossed out on the street.
Even if the Labour Party can survive a no-confidence vote in British Parliament, full elections will still need to be held regardless by 2010. As things stand, expect a Prime Minister David Cameron, the Conservative Party leader, within two years.
Labour Party Loses in London Elections (News Video)
May 2nd, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Conservatives elected in Germany.
Conservatives elected in France.
Now conservatives elected in England.
Yo, America, wake up. George Bush was just ahead of his time.
May 2nd, 2008 at 2:35 pm
[...] today is possibly one of the worst days for Labour. They have lost council after council and 331 council seats so far, man what a bad day they’re [...]
May 2nd, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Of course, conservative in Europe is really slightly left of center comparatively speaking. But this is a good sign nonetheless.
Sarkozy is still my favorite non-American conservative.
May 2nd, 2008 at 5:16 pm
I wonder if there is any pattern to the switching between (relative) conservative and liberal power in the US and in Europe. For example, is the US typically a leader and Europe follows, or vice versa? Maybe there is not any connection, but I wouldn’t be surprized if the same general forces are at play. In other words, the major parties require support from the middle, and the middle tends to swing the other direction once the leading party begins to stray from their principles and or fail at their promises.
I can always lower my blood pressure over political issues by just remembering that in a few years things will flip and then I can be ticked or disenchanted about something else!
May 2nd, 2008 at 6:03 pm
YD, I think you have part of it right. Here is the reality:
The natural human Way is to blame others for our problems, and thus the ruled mob always blames government for their problems. You see this phenomenon in the workplace as well, particularly among clerks. I was amused by a thread earlier this week demonstrating this principle, in which commenter after commenter blamed current and former presidents for our real and imagined woes.
During a presidency, eight years of blame build up to the point where nobody wants to see that guy’s party in power again. This is the reason it is extraordinarily rare for any party to hold the White House for more than eight years. Has only happened once since FDR, and would thus make a John McCain presidency rather historic.
No, the mob gets sick and tired of pent up frustration and is always ready to throw them out after two terms. It is purely a local thing in each country, unrelated to other nations. Whomever is in charge of me, my problems must be their fault.
May 3rd, 2008 at 8:18 am
Let’s just say that Gordon Brown is no Tony Blair. The Labour Party made the right decision 14 years ago or so when they put Blair as the head of their party over Brown who remained bitter throughout the 90’s and 2000’s over the slight.
Brown inspires 0 confidence in England ( I have spent some time there) and even though the Brits were pissed at Blair for supporting Bush, they cannot stand Brown who is standoffish and arrogant. They actually miss Blair now. This vote was really a vote against Brown. The general election will be in 2 years and I am sure that Brown will wait to the last second to call for elections.
He is in big trouble.
May 3rd, 2008 at 8:32 am
Any chance of a vote of no confidence to force new parliament elections?
May 3rd, 2008 at 8:58 am
Very little. Despite the antipathy towards Brown, the English generally do no like to be so bold. They would rather insult one another in Parliament for the next 2 years. They are quite good at that. He is in big trouble in 2 years.
May 3rd, 2008 at 10:34 am
CSPAN British Parliament is the best. Question day is must watch TV.
May 6th, 2008 at 7:00 pm
This is great news for conservatives generally. But Londoners will also benefit entertainment-wise.
This bloke Boris Johnson is a real eccentric and funny to boot. His time in office will be a great change from the grim reign of Red Ken.
July 24th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
[...] is the second crushing defeat for the liberal Labour Party in two months after a historic trouncing in local London elections in May, the so-called “Black Friday” election. Read more [...]