British PM Starmer Says He Won’t Resign Despite Labour’s Defeat In Regional Elections

British PM Keir Starmer said he won’t resign even though the Labour Party was defeated in local and regional elections and right-wing party Reform U.K saw significant gains.

The Associated Press detailed that the elections were seen as a referendum on the government and Starmer, who has seen his approval rate plummet since he took office less than two years ago.

Starmer said on Friday he took responsibility for the “very tough” results but is not planning on leaving office. “The voters have sent a message about the pace of change, how they want their lives improved,” he said.

“I was elected to meet those challenges, and I’m not going to walk away from those challenges and plunge the country into chaos,” Starmer added. However, analysts who spoke to the outlet said it is unlikely Starmer will survive as party leader by the time the next national election takes place in 2029.

In contrast, Reform U.K. won hundreds of seats in local councils across England, including in traditionally working-class areas seen as Labour strongholds in the northern region. It could also be the first time the party does not come out first in Wales in over 100 years.

Party leader Nigel Farage said the outcome showed a “historic change in British politics,” noting that Labour was being “wiped out by Reform in many of their traditional areas.”