Britain's ruling Labor Party was dealt a heavy blow on Friday as results of local elections emerged.
According to local media reports, Labor garnered its worst election result in 40 years.
So far Labor has lost 358 seats and 10 councils whereas the Conservative Party has picked up 235 seats and eight councils.
Analysts said such a share in a general election would have the potential to give the Conservative Party a majority of 138 seats at the House of Commons.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown described Thursday night as "bad" and "disappointing," adding that "testing economic circumstances" had not helped Labor.
But he assured the public that the government "had listened" and would "move forward" to "steer them through these difficult times."
"The test of leadership is not what happens in a period of success but what happens in difficult circumstances," Brown noted.
David Cameron, leader of the opposition Conservative Party, hailed the result as "a vote of positive confidence in the Conservative Party," and "a very big moment" for the Tories, but he noted that he did not want to win a general election just because Labor was failing.
"I want us to really prove to people that we can make the changes they want to see. That's what I'm going to devote myself and my party to doing over the next few months," he said.
The results for the London mayoral election are yet to be announced late Friday. If Ken Livingstone, the incumbent mayor, wins over his Conservative rival Boris Johnson, it would be a silver lining for battered Labor.
Source:Xinhua
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