Rishi Sunak, Oppn Labour hit campaign trail for July 4 election

London: Rishi Sunak, his Conservative Party colleagues and Opposition Labour Leader Keir Starmer and his shadow cabinet hit the campaign trail with gusto on Thursday, a day after the British Prime Minister surprised many within his ranks by calling an election just six weeks away on July 4.

The 44-year-old British Indian leader’s rain-soaked speech on the steps of 10 Downing Street on Wednesday evening sent the political corridors of the country into a flurry of activity, with Sunak hitting the ground running with a campaign event in east London right after with his three poll pitches of “Clear Plan, Bold Action, Secure Future”.

“Over the next few weeks, I will fight for every vote,” he pledged.

Asked by the BBC why he chose to fire the starting gun for the election race getting drenched in the pouring rain, Sunak replied that it showed that he is “not a fair-weather politician”.

“I believe very strongly in the traditions of our country. And when prime ministers make important statements like that, they do it on the steps of Downing Street come rain or shine. And I believe in those traditions and that’s why I did what I did,” he explained.

The Opposition Labour Party Leader, Starmer, kicked his campaign off with a simpler one-word message – “Change”.

“On July 4 you have the choice. And together, we can stop the chaos. We can turn the page. We can start to rebuild Britain, and change our country,” he declared.

The reaction to a summer general election, which was not expected before October when Sunak would have completed three years in office as Prime Minister, has been mixed – with many Tory MPs fearful of losing their seats due to the anti-incumbency that has built up after 14 years of the party being in charge.