Sunak says 'sorry' to voters in exit speech after Starmer crush

Britain's Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak apologized to voters in his exit speech after being crushed by Labour's left-wing leader Keir Starmer in a general election that saw Trump-ally Nigel Farage win a seat in parliament.

Right-wing Sunak bade goodbye to Downing Street this morning after leading his party to their worst ever election result as Starmer prepares to become the new prime minister. Flanked by his wife Akshata, the outgoing prime minister delivered his parting statement outside the doors of Number 10 as he prepares to head for Buckingham Palace where he will formally tender his resignation to the King.

He said he was 'sorry' and had 'heard the anger' of the country and the 'clear message' of the ballot. 'I have given this job my all. But you have sent a clear message, and yours is the only judgement that matters,' he added. 'This is a difficult day, but I leave this job honoured to have been Prime Minister of the best country in the world.'

Mr Sunak said he would be resigning as Tory leader once a replacement has been chosen and also paid tribute to Sir Keir as a piblic servant, wishing him and his family well in their new responsibilities. It comes after a jubilant Starmer boasted 'we did it' today after after crushing Sunak in a landslide win for the Labour Party in the UK's first national election in almost five years.

Sir Kier, who will officially become prime minister later in the day, boasted his victory at a rally in central London alongside his wife Victoria Starmer this morning after the party formally crested the 326 seats needed to control the House of Commons. In an impassioned speech, the left-wing politician said the British people had 'voted to turn the page' on 14 years of Conservative leadership - and vowed the 'changed Labour party is ready to restore Britain to the service of working people'.

It came just minutes after Rishi Sunak admitted defeat, acknowledging that Sir Kier had won the tense election as he took a small victory in his own Richmond & Northallerton, North Yorkshire, seat. In a speech, the broken outgoing prime minister said: 'The British people have delivered a sobering verdict tonight, there is much to learn… and I take responsibility for the loss'.

Also netting an impressive 21,225 votes, Nigel Farage , Reform UK leader and pal of Donald Trump , nabbed the Essex seat of Clacton from the Conservatives who came second with 12,820 votes, and warned his party is 'coming for Labour'. Speaking after the result, a grinning Farage said: 'I think what Reform UK has achieved in just a few short weeks is truly extraordinary.' He added: 'There's no enthusiasm for Labour whatsoever. This Labour government will be in trouble - very, very quickly. We're coming for Labour, be in no doubt about that.'

Trump took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to congratulate the right-wing leader, saying: 'Congratulations to Nigel Farage on his big WIN of a Parliament Seat Amid Reform UK Election Success. Nigel is a man who truly loves his country.' Mr Farage had originally intended to spend much of the rest of the year campaigning for Trump in the U.S. before announcing he would 'come out of retirement' to run in Clacton in this election.

With almost all the results in, Labour had won 410 seats in the 650-seat House of Commons and the Conservatives 118. 'A mandate like this comes with a great responsibility,' Starmer said, saying that the fight to regain people's trust after years of disillusionment 'is the battle that defines our age.' Speaking at the Tate Modern art gallery as dawn broke in London, he said Labour would offer 'the sunlight of hope, pale at first but getting stronger through the day.'

For Starmer, it is a historic win and a massive triumph after spending 'four-and-a-half years of work changing the party'. 'We have the chance to repair our public services because we changed the party,' he said defiantly. 'We have have the chance to make work pay because we changed the party. We have the chance to deliver for working people, young people, vulnerable people, the poorest in society because we changed the party'.

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