— Heather Conley, Center for Strategic and International Studies
The preliminary results of the UK General Election held on June 8 showed that the ruling Conservative Party led by the British Prime Minister Theresa May gained 297 seats, whereas its closest rival – the Labour Party led by Jeremy Corbyn – won 252 seats. In the meantime, the Scottish National Party gained 34 seats, the Liberal Democrats – 11 seats, and the Democratic Unionist Party – 10 seats. According to the BBC, the voter turnout rate was at 68.6%. In order to secure a parliamentary majority, it is necessary to gain at least 326 seats. An exit poll release on Thursday showed that the Tories would win the largest number of seats but lose its majority. According to analysts, the following outcome is set to hurt badly the upcoming Brexit negotiation. The BBS estimated that Theresa May's Conservatives would get 318 seats, whereas the Labour Party – 262. Thus, Britain is on course for a hung parliament, meaning that if no party secures a majority, the Labour and the Conservatives will need to make deals with the smaller parties to form a coalition. The Sterling dropped markedly, briefly hitting its one-month low of $1.72.
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