LONDON (AP) – U.K. elections can be brutal affairs.
The polls close at 10 p.m. local time. Within hours the movers can be parked outside Number 10 Downing Street waiting to ferry away the losing prime minister’s belongings. There’s no U.S.-style 10-week transition here.
Since World War II, elections have led to eight changes in power, mostly conducted in an orderly fashion. In his landslide victory in 1997, Tony Blair gave his maiden speech as premier in front of the famous black door by lunchtime the day after the election.
But May 7’s general election looks like it’s going to be the most uncertain in the postwar period and the process of forming the next government could take days, if not weeks.
The traditional two-party system that’s dominated British politics since 1945 is fraying like never done before with the Scottish National Party, for one, widely tipped to make big gains in the north.