LONDON - Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative Party avoided a wipeout in London local elections and eked out gains in Brexit-supporting regions elsewhere, results on Friday showed, denting the opposition Labour Party’s hopes of a big win. The elections are viewed as a gauge of public support for May as she faces a possible revolt in parliament over her strategy for leaving the European Union.
With two thirds of results declared, May had avoided the kind of widespread losses that would have weakened her authority over Conservative lawmakers ahead of key tests of her plans to take Britain out of the EU customs union as it quits the bloc.
“These results are as good as any government party after eight years in power could expect,” said Tony Travers, a professor at the London School of Economics Department of Government. ADVERTISEMENT
“They’ll be a relief for May and the Conservative Party as a whole because they’re suggestive that despite the fact the Conservatives are in an on-and-off civil war over Brexit, the Labour Party’s problems are possibly worse.”