Tony Blair and Labour Win 3rd Term
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James Joyner | Thursday, May 5, 2005 |
Fox News reports that Tony Blair’s Labour has won a third term. Apparently, both Britain’s ITN and the AP have also made this projection from the exit polls but I can’t find an online link yet. A Labour win was expected, since the Conservative Party was also in favor of the controversial Iraq War and the Liberal Democrats remain mired in minor party status.
Update: Blair Projected Winner in British Election (AP 5:09 PM EDT)
Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Labour Party won a third term in office with a sharply reduced 66-seat majority in Parliament, according to exit poll projections broadcast as vote counting began in Britain’s national election Thursday.
Counting in 645 Parliamentary districts was continuing through the night, and the winner would not be officially confirmed at least until Friday morning. A third term would be a triumph for Blair, whose campaign for re-election was dominated by a furious debate about his credibility in the wake of the divisive Iraq war.
While my ideology leads me to root for the Tories, I’m happy to see Mr. Blair win this one. His courageous stand on the war was especially admirable given that he was wildly popular while the war was not. He was willing to risk his political career–and nearly lost it–on principle.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
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coverage is on live on C-Span 2. The BBC is reporting that there will be very few changes in the seat numbers for each party.
A majority of 66 leaves blair dead in the water.He'll be a lame duck who'll fall anytime brown wants to move into no 10.
The odds are good that Blair will go within the next year - first big difficult vote and he could face a motion of no confidence
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