Britain set for Dec. 12 election to break the Brexit deadlock

Reuters - Britain will hold its first December election in almost a century after Prime Minister Boris Johnson won approval from parliament on Tuesday (October 28) for an early ballot aimed at breaking the Brexit deadlock. After the European Union granted a third delay to the divorce that was originally supposed to take place on March 29, the United Kingdom, its parliament and its electorate remain divided on how, or indeed whether, to go ahead with Brexit. Johnson, who had promised to deliver Brexit on Oct. 31 "do or die", demanded a Dec. 12 election after parliament - where he has no majority - frustrated his attempts to ratify the last-minute divorce deal he struck with the EU earlier this month. In a rare parliamentary success for Johnson after a string of defeats, his short bill calling for a Dec. 12 election was approved 438 to 20 in the House of Commons. The bill now goes to the House of Lords. "It's time to unite the country and get Brexit done," Johnson said after meeting Conservative Party lawmakers who cheered him. Before the vote, Johnson had said parliament was obstructing Brexit and thus damaging the economy by preventing investment decisions, and corroding faith in democracy. The first Christmas election in Britain since 1923 would be highly unpredictable: Brexit has variously fatigued and enraged swathes of voters while eroding traditional loyalties to the two major parties, Conservative and Labour.