Great Britain: Election defeat: More setbacks for Johnson

Great Britain
Election defeat: More setbacks for Johnson

The air is getting thinner for political survivor Boris Johnson. The British Prime Minister suffered two crushing defeats for his party in by-elections in English constituencies.

Another blow followed on Friday with the resignation of its general secretary. Nevertheless, Johnson was determined to continue. The 58-year-old has been in office since July 2019, but is increasingly being opposed by his own party.

In the by-election, the Conservatives lost the constituency of Tiverton and Honiton in the South West to the Liberal Democrats and the constituency of Wakefield in the North to Labor. Both constituencies have so far been represented by Conservative MPs who have had to resign their mandates because of sexual misconduct. Johnson and his party are also suffering the consequences of the so-called Partygate affair. It’s about illegal celebrations in the government district during the Corona lockdown.

Will there be more resignations?

The Conservative Secretary General, Oliver Dowden, justified his resignation as follows: “Somebody has to take responsibility. And I have come to the conclusion that I cannot remain in office under the circumstances.” It is now eagerly awaited whether further departures will follow.

The electoral defeat is likely to further weaken Johnson’s position at the head of the party and government. At a summit of the heads of state and government of the Commonwealth countries in Rwanda, he was demonstratively calm. “When people have problems, they send messages to politicians, and politicians have to react.” Johnson primarily blames the increased cost of living for the defeats. He had previously rejected a resignation and even described it as “crazy”.

Labor opposition leader Keir Starmer said of the results of the by-election: “What a judgment on the Tories and Boris Johnson that is: aloof, unimaginative. And if they had an ounce of decency, they would make way for the good of the country.”

The main problem is that the two constituencies represent two important groups of voters who helped the prime minister to win in 2019. Tiverton and Honiton is in the Conservative homeland of the South West. Wakefield is actually a traditional Labor stronghold in the north of England, which was once characterized by industry and mining. Johnson was able to win there three years ago because the mood was very much in favor of Brexit, leaving the EU.

Criticism of Johnson from his own party is getting louder

For many MPs, the fact that the Tories have now suffered crushing defeats in both constituencies is proof that Johnson has become a liability. The Conservatives are headed for defeat in the next general election, warned ex-Attorney General David Gauke. “The best chance to straighten this out is to overthrow the prime minister,” Gauke told Sky News. Johnson had thrown him out of the party. Former Tory boss Michael Howard also called for a fresh start.

The head of government recently had to face a vote of no confidence in his own parliamentary group in connection with the Partygate affair. Although he survived the vote, he has since been counted out. According to the rules, another vote of no confidence can take place after twelve months at the earliest. There is speculation that this could be changed. Further resignations from the cabinet or defeats in votes in the lower house could also force Johnson out of office.

Gauke expects the knockout to come after the summer break at the latest, when the result of a parliamentary inquiry is expected. A committee is currently examining whether Johnson deliberately misled the House of Commons in the Partygate affair. The prime minister had claimed there had been no parties at government headquarters during the pandemic. The police saw things differently and even issued him with a fine themselves because he was at a party. Gauke said if the committee accused Johnson of lying, “it would be game over.”

dpa