The Scottish National Party (SNP) is facing a significant setback in the UK election, with an exit poll predicting a dismal performance for the party. The poll projects the SNP to win only 10 seats in the British parliament, a dramatic decrease from its previous hold of 43 seats. This would be the party’s worst showing since 2010. The SNP’s decline is attributed to a period of internal turmoil, including the resignation of two leaders within a year, an ongoing police investigation into the party’s finances, and internal disagreements on key policies, particularly regarding a second independence referendum. Former leader Nicola Sturgeon acknowledged the exit poll’s grim outlook for the SNP, but expressed hope that the final results would be broadly similar. The SNP’s dominance in the Scottish seats of the British parliament began in 2015, fueled by the support of pro-independence voters following the 2014 independence referendum, which saw Scotland vote to remain part of the UK by 55% to 45%. Despite the 2014 referendum’s outcome, it galvanized support for the SNP, leading to substantial victories in the 2015, 2017, and 2019 elections. The SNP even became the third largest party in the Westminster parliament, despite contesting less than 10% of the available seats. Meanwhile, the exit poll predicts a landslide victory for the Labour Party, forecasting 410 seats out of the 650 in the British parliament. Although specific figures for Scotland’s 57 seats are not yet available, Labour is expected to make significant gains in the region after winning only one seat in 2019. If the exit poll results hold true, the Liberal Democrats and the right-wing Reform party would surpass the SNP in the number of seats they hold in the Westminster parliament.
