According to the official results, Scottish separatists won the regional Parliament elections. There was one seat less than the independent majority of the Scottish National Party. However, Nicolas Sturgeon’s group can count on the cooperation of the Greens, who also want to separate from London.
The Scottish National Party won 64 seats in Hollywood and won the fourth election in a row, ignoring autonomy, although the Mixed Election Act is structured in such a way that a coalition has to be formed. SNP got one mandate compared to 2016. The Conservatives came in second. They have 31 seats, unchanged from the previous elections. The left winger came third with 22 seats (a loss of two). The Greens won eight seats, improving the score by two. The Liberal Democrats lost one seat and now have four seats.
Scottish National Party Prime Minister and Leader Nicola Sturgeon warned that no one should now oppose the vote on the referendum. If the Conservatives tried to do so, they would not oppose the SNP. They are against the will of the Scottish citizens. This will be the ultimate proof that the UK is not an alliance of equal partners. The head of the separatists said that the government in London no longer saw the kingdom as a voluntary union of states.
In southern England, the election map has turned blue. Boris Johnson’s conservatives were successful in the local elections, capturing many of the traditional strongholds of the crisis-stricken left. Nicola Sturgeon argued that the success of the Right was another reason the Scots chose independence.
The Scots are more left-wing and pro-European than the English
Residents of Edinburgh and Glasgow often voice opinions of the left, and they are also often supportive of the European Union. Most Scots support a progressive and open vision for the future of our nation. But we have many years ahead with a right-wing government obsessed with Brexit. The prime minister said that the government does not vote for it.
But according to the research, the Scots are divided on independence. Although at the start of the year, a dozen or so polls showed a clear advantage of “yes”, the results have recently been around the tie once again. In the past, Nicolas Sturgeon suggested another referendum would be better when several consecutive polls showed support for independence at around 60%. These elections also demonstrated the ability to mobilize voters who do not want independence. In many circles, the Conservative supporters have shifted their votes tactically to the left in order to block the separatist candidate, and thus the Scottish National Party’s path to an independent majority.
Johnson does not want to be “the prime minister who lost Scotland”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already stated that recovering from the pandemic is a bad time to talk about the independence referendum. The Times writes that it recalls how the Brexit referendum ended by its predecessor David Cameron. According to the newspaper, Boris Johnson does not want history to be remembered as “the prime minister who lost Scotland.”
It is not at all clear whether the central government in London should agree to the vote. Seven years ago, David Cameron’s government did so, on the basis of a deal with the separatists. But Edinburgh might try to organize the vote itself, which would create a constitutional dispute that the courts would have to resolve.
