UPDATE - UK Labour leader Starmer says 'people have spoken, they are ready for change’

ADDS LATEST FIGURES

By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal

LONDON (AA) – UK Labour Party leader Keir Starmer said early Friday that the people “have spoken and they're ready for change, to end the politics of performance and return to politics as public service.”

In his acceptance speech after being re-elected in Holborn & St Pancras, Starmer, who is set to become Britain’s new prime minister, said “the change begins right here.”

Speaking to his constituents, he said it was a “huge privilege to be reelected to serve this constituency.”

Starmer thanked all those who supported him during the election campaign and also paid “tribute to my fellow candidates who put themselves forward for public service.”

“I promise this: Whether you voted for me or not, I will serve every person in this constituency," he said.

“The mothers I sat with who've lost children to knife crime, the pensioners who can't get the doctor’s appointments they desperately need, the local businesses who have struggled so hard to keep their head above water -- I will speak out for you, have your back, fight in your corner every single day.”

-Labour leads vote count

The Labour Party has been projected by an exit poll to win 410 seats in the House of Commons, while the Conservatives are expected to hold 131 seats.

As 400 of the 650 constituencies have already declared the results, Labour has so far won 288 seats.

The Conservative Party and Liberal Democrats follow Labour with 56 seats and 35 seats respectively. Reform UK has won four seats so far, including the seat won by party leader Nigel Farage in Clacton.

In Islington North, former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn was elected as an independent candidate.

In another development, Grant Shapps, Britain’s Secretary of Defense, lost his parliamentary seat.

Voting in the snap election ended at 10 p.m. (2100GMT), and the vote counting will be in progress throughout the night. The official results will come when the counting is over in all constituencies in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Starmer will replace Rishi Sunak as the new prime minister after the official results are declared.

Millions of voters across the UK cast their ballots to elect 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) to the lower house of Parliament.

The center-right Conservatives have governed the country since 2010. Having secured victories in the last three general elections—2015, 2017 and 2019—the party is predicted to win 131 seats.

The exit poll also suggests that the Liberal Democrats will win 61 seats, Reform UK will win 13 and the Scottish National Party (SNP) 10, while independents and others will get 25 seats.