UK's landmark postwar elections: When Labour won big against war hero Churchill in 1945

LONDON (AP) — Britain's upcoming general election is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. Many analysts believe it will be one of the country's most consequential elections since the end of World War II.

Ahead of the July 4 vote, The Associated Press takes a look back at other landmark elections since the war.

The last time a U.K. national election took place in July was in 1945, when Winston Churchill's Conservative Party suffered one of its biggest-ever defeats shortly after the Allies' victory over Nazi Germany.

That result may appear surprising to many in 2024, given the reverence with which Churchill is still viewed both in the U.K. and abroad.

However, during the war years, Churchill had been governing in a coalition with other parties, notably Labour, whose leader Clement Attlee acted as his deputy and others held important portfolios. The war effort required a high degree of state-run planning, and egalitarian — even socialist — feelings flourished.

The election on July 5, 1945 was the first to be contested for a decade because of WWII, and it showed how much Britain had changed since the Great Depression in the early 1930s.

With Churchill still largely in wartime mode as Japan had yet to be defeated and lukewarm in his support of a wider social safety net, Labour fought the election on domestic issues, campaigning for housing for all, full employment and state intervention in the economy.

The results of the election were announced three weeks later on July 26, after giving time for forces abroad to vote. Labour had won a landslide victory, securing 48% of the vote and its biggest ever majority in the House of Commons.

Attlee's government, which lasted until 1951, is one of the most transformative in the history of Britain and remains the standard by which all subsequent Labour administrations are judged.

From the creation of the National Health Service in 1948 to the huge expansion of the welfare state and the nationalization of an array of industries, Attlee's administration left its mark for decades to come. Many of its accomplishments remain in place. Despite its many problems, the NHS remains the most revered institution in British life.

FILE - Clement Attlee smiles at the cheering crowd gathered at Transport House, in London on July 26, 1945, to hear Labour's victory at the polls. His wife Violet Attlee stands at left. The upcoming general election on July 4, 2024 is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. According to many experts, it is expected to be one of the most consequential elections since the end of World War II. (AP Photo/Leslie Priest, File)

FILE - The War Cabinet at No. 10 Downing Street in London, Oct. 15, 1941. Seated from left, Sir John Anderson, Lord President of the council; Prime Minister Winston Churchill; C.R. Attlee, Lord Privy Seal; Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, standing from left, Arthur Greenwood, Minister without portfolio; Ernest Bevin, Minister of Labour; Lord Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production, and Sir Kingsley Wood, Chancellor of the Exchequer. The upcoming general election on July 4, 2024 is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. According to many experts, it is expected to be one of the most consequential elections since the end of World War II. (AP Photo/File)

FILE - Britain's Prime Minister Winston Churchill, accompanied by his wife Clementine Churchill, tours his constituency, Woodford in England, July 5, 1945, urging people to vote in the upcoming general election. The upcoming general election on July 4, 2024 is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. According to many experts, it is expected to be one of the most consequential elections since the end of World War II. Churchill's Conservative Party suffered one of its biggest-ever defeats shortly after the victory over Nazi Germany in 1945. (AP Photo/File)

LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Sunday dismissed suggestions that his party was headed to defeat in the July 4 general election, using one of his final televised appearances to defend the Conservatives’ record on the economy.

Sunak told the BBC that he believed he’d still be in power by the end of the week, despite opinion polls that have found the Conservatives trailing far behind the opposition Labour Party of Keir Starmer.

“I’m fighting very hard," Sunak said. “And I think people are waking up to the real danger of what a Labour government means.”

While he acknowledged that the last few years “had been difficult for everyone,’’ Sunak declared it was “completely and utterly wrong” to suggest that Britain's place in the world has diminished since Brexit.

“It’s entirely wrong, this kind of declinist narrative that people have of the U.K. I wholeheartedly reject,” he said. “It (the U.K.) is a better place to live than it was in 2010.’’

After 14 years of Conservative-led governments, many voters blame the party for Britain’s cost-of-living crisis, long waiting lists for health care, high levels of immigration and the dislocations caused by Britain's departure from the European Union.

Sunak, who became prime minister in October 2022, has tried to silence his critics by arguing that his policies have begun to solve those problems and warning that Starmer, the Labour leader, would raise taxes if his party wins the election.

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks with local children during a visit to a bakery in Golders Green, while on the general election campaign trail, in north west London, Sunday June 30, 2024. (James Manning/Pool Photo via AP)

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks with local children during a visit to a bakery in Golders Green, while on the general election campaign trail, in north west London, Sunday June 30, 2024. (James Manning/Pool Photo via AP)

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks with local children during a visit to a bakery in Golders Green, while on the general election campaign trail, in north west London, Sunday June 30, 2024. (James Manning/Pool Photo via AP)

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak looks on during a visit to Machzike Hadath Synagogue, in Golders Green, while on the general election campaign trail, in north west London, Sunday June 30, 2024. (James Manning/Pool Photo via AP)