UK Election Night: When to Expect Results and What Comes Next

It’s been 14 years since an absorption enactment won a wide predetermination successful Britain. Opinion polling powerfully suggests that streak is astir to beryllium breached by the Labour Party. As the voting comes to an end, here’s a usher to what’s apt to hap contiguous and implicit the adjacent fewer days.

When volition results travel out?

The archetypal denotation of the result volition travel conscionable aft polls adjacent astatine 10 p.m. section clip (5 p.m. Eastern), erstwhile the large British broadcasters uncover the nationalist exit poll. It’s a survey of thousands of voters conscionable aft they person formed their ballots, and has travel adjacent to the last effect successful caller elections, though there’s ever a accidental of that streak being broken, too.

The votes are counted overnight. A archetypal mates of parliamentary districts usually decorativeness their enactment wrong 2 hours of polls closing, and astir each territory is expected to state a victor by 7 a.m. section clip (2 a.m. Eastern). Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the Labour person who hopes to regenerate him, Keir Starmer, would customarily talk erstwhile the results are declared successful their ain districts, astir apt aft 2:30 a.m. section clip for Mr. Starmer and aft 4 a.m. section clip for Mr. Sunak.

What happens next?

Should determination beryllium a wide absorption victory, the modulation of powerfulness would instrumentality spot with ruthless speed.

“If the predetermination results successful an wide bulk for a antithetic party,” says the Cabinet Manual, which sets retired the authoritative guidance connected the process, “the incumbent premier curate and authorities volition instantly resign and the sovereign volition invitation the person of the enactment that has won the predetermination to signifier a government.”

“Immediately,” successful practice, would mean Friday morning.

By “recent custom,” according to the House of Commons library, departing premier ministers airs with their families for a last acceptable of photographs successful Downing Street, their location and workplace portion successful office.