LONDON – Prime Minister Tony Blair rewrote British political history Thursday to become the first Labour Party leader to win re-election to a second successive full term in power. With 418 of the 659 constituencies reporting, Labour had won 330 seats, just enough for a majority.
The Conservatives won 53 and the third-party Liberal Democrats and others the remainder. Conservative rival William Hague conceded his crushing defeat.
“There is no greater honor than to serve you as prime minister,” a buoyant Blair told supporters. “You have given us tonight an historic moment … the Labor Party, for the first time in the 100 years of our history, looks as if we may be on the verge of a second successive full term of office.”
The nationwide vote amounted to a ringing endorsement of Mr. Blair’s centrist “New Labour” government and a strong rejection of William Hague and the Conservative Party, which has done little to regain the stature it lost when it was removed from power four years ago.
Mr. Blair would become the most successful leader in the Labour Party’s 100-year history if the victory margin turns out to be as wide as predicted by the exit polls.
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott said after the polls closed that voters had endorsed the Labor Party’s handling of the national economy and its promise to improve public services throughout Britain.
“We’ve done what we said we would do. We have done a good job so far,” Mr. Prescott said, expressing caution about the exit polls. “We’ll be very happy to receive such a result.”
Blair, 48, is one of the most successful national leaders in Europe, he is the most formidable British politician since former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
