Boris vs Jeremy: British elections begin; key polls for Brexit future

TIL Desk/World/London/ Britain went to the polls on Thursday, the country’s third general election in less than five years, to break the Brexit deadlock that has paralysed the country’s politics since the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union. A total of 3,322 candidates are standing across the 650 seats in the House of Commons this year. Polling stations at all constituencies across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland opened at 07:00 GMT.

After the polls close at 22:00 GMT, counting will begin straight away. Most results are due to be announced in the early hours of Friday morning. Any party with more than half the MPs (326) in the Commons usually forms the government. If no party has a majority of MPs, the one with the most can form a coalition, with one or more other parties to gain control.

While Johnson has been focused on his party’s Get Brexit Done message, the Opposition parties have been offering another referendum on the final Brexit deal and have been keen on focussing on domestic issues such as the struggling state-funded National Health Service (NHS). After failing to deliver Brexit by an October 31 deadline, Johnson called the December 12 snap election.