British Prime Minister David Cameron and his Conservative Party won a stunning election victory in parliamentary elections last week. While the Tories have a majority in the new Parliament, the election has unleashed political forces that will make governing exceptionally difficult and may even threaten the survival of the United Kingdom itself. Britain and the world will now discover how talented and capable a politician Cameron truly is.
The outcome of the British election was uncertain until the moment the polls opened. Then a virtual tidal wave of support emerged for the Conservatives, eviscerating their coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats, and handing Labour a reality check that will encourage soul-searching among the party faithful and its leaders. When the dust had settled — and the metaphor is more apt than usual — the Conservatives held 331 seats in the new Parliament, enough for a majority in the 650-seat assembly, Labour had 232, the Scottish National Party (SNP) claimed 56, and the Lib Dems practically vanished, dropping from 57 seats to just eight.
Cameron's accomplishment has confounded virtually all observers. Reportedly the Tories' own internal polls the morning of the vote did not show a victory of this magnitude. Governing parties in Britain do not pick up seats in elections. The only other incumbent government to increase its majority in recent history was that headed by "the Iron Lady," Margaret Thatcher, in the prime of her career three decades ago. That is impressive company, especially for a man considered uninspiring and unsteady.