Decisive Victory for the Conservative Party in British Parliamentary Elections

With the fate of 634 seats in the British Parliament determined, the Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister David Cameron, declared victory before the complete counting of votes was finished. Reports from British media by noon on Friday, May 18, indicate that the Conservatives have secured the 326 seats necessary for victory, thus achieving a majority in a Parliament that has 650 seats. Following the Conservatives, the Labour Party holds 230 seats, the Scottish National Party has 56 seats, and the Liberal Democrats have 8 seats, while 22 seats have been allocated to other groups. The German news agency reports that David Cameron has called the election result the 'sweetest victory' of his political life, a result that will allow the Conservative Party to govern Britain for another five years. On the other hand, Ed Miliband has resigned from his leadership of the Labour Party following its defeat in the elections. The Labour Party has lost about 25 seats compared to the previous election five years ago, prompting Miliband to state on Twitter, 'I take full responsibility for these results.' Nick Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, has also been forced to resign after his party's heavy defeat. The Liberal Democrats, who had secured 57 seats in the 2010 election and participated in David Cameron's coalition government, have only managed to win 8 seats this time. Clegg described his party's defeat in the parliamentary elections as 'catastrophic' and 'painful.' Meanwhile, BBC World has reported that David Cameron is heading to Buckingham Palace to meet with the Queen following his election victory. Most pre-election polls indicated that the Conservative Party would not be able to secure more than 285 seats.