• blackn1ght@feddit.uk
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    1 year ago

    What happens if a party loses its majority from a byelection result? Does it trigger a general election?

    • frankPodmore@slrpnk.net
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      1 year ago

      We’re still some way off that, unfortunately! The Tories would have to lose another 26 by-elections, which doesn’t seem likely.

      It has actually happened before: John Major lost his (much smaller) 1992 majority when Labour won the Wirral South byelection, albeit this was only a couple of months before he had to hold a GE by law anyway. Of course, he still clung on to the bitter end before, in an encouraging precedent for Labour and the country, losing in a landslide.

      !HumanPenguin@feddit.uk is correct that the Opposition parties would then have to win a Vote of No Confidence (VONC). I suspect the NI unionist parties would still vote to keep Sunak in power in that situation, but who knows? Probably this late in the Parliament, Starmer, like Blair in '97, would choose to just wait till the GE rather than calling a VONC he might not win.

    • HumanPenguin@feddit.uk
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      1 year ago

      Not automatically. But most likely yes.

      General elections happen when gov calls. Or opposision parties can win a no confidence vote. So if the tories has 1 short of a majority. Election would become more likely but require other parties to call and vote the gov down. Of course some may support the gov. Or form a new gov.