LONDON — It was an astonishing election by any estimation. A prime minister humiliated, a Labour leader dismissed as a no-hoper massively outperforming expectations, Britain’s government and the nature of its upcoming exit from the European Union thrown into the air. 
 
 Here are some key takeaways from the U.K.’s June 8 election. 
 
 1. Return of two-party politics 
 
 The combined vote share of the two main parties, as it stood at 5:30 a.m. U.K. time with more than 620 seats declared, was 82.7 percent, up from 67.3 percent just two years ago and the highest in any general election since 1970. 
 
 Despite their misery at losing their majority, the Conservatives, on 42.3 percent of the vote, polled better than they have done since 1983. Labour’s 40.4 percent is its best national performance since Tony Blair’s second general election in 2001. 
 
 There are several explanations for Britain’s dramatic return to dominance of the Conservatives and Labour. 
 
 UKIP collapsed. In recent elections, the anti-EU party was a recipient of the so-called protest vote, and a lightning rod in 2015 for voters concerned about immigration and the influence of Brussels. That year it took 12.7 percent of the vote, giving the Euroskeptic party, in terms of vote share at least, third place. But last year’s EU referendum turned UKIP’s unique selling point — its intention to get Britain out of the EU — into the mainstream policy goal of both the Conservatives and Labour. Millions of voters who had deserted traditional leading parties for UKIP “came home” in 2017. 
 
 Meanwhile, the collapse of the traditional third party, the Liberal Democrats, in 2015, after entering coalition government with the Tories and losing its longstanding protest vote, has not been reversed. In fact, the party appears likely to take an even lower national vote share this time after a campaign that bet the house on an ardently pro-EU stance. Britain’s first-past-the-post electoral system means the party will likely take marginally more seats this time, but as a recipient of a major segment of the U.K. population’s vote — in 2010, 23 percent backed it — the party seems diminished, perhaps permanently so. 
 
 Add in the shine coming off the SNP’s offer of Scottish independence north of the border and left-wing Green supporters flirting with Corbyn, and you have a formula for two-party dominance. 
 
 2. Failure of political intelligence 
 
 Pollsters have not forgotten getting the 2015 election badly wrong. Most predicted the parties would be neck-and-neck throughout, only to see the Conservatives comfortably become the largest party. A subsequent inquest led to a range of new polling methods. 
 
 For most, it didn’t work out. The majority of polling companies gave the Conservatives a comfortable lead going into polling day. The actual result proved much closer to the result predicted by Survation and projections by an experimental model used by YouGov called MRP — multi-level regression and post-stratification, for the nerds out there — which received considerable disdain for veering so far from the trend during the campaign. Both gave more credence than other polling companies to claims from young voters that this time, despite historical precedent, they would go out and vote. So it has proved. 
 
 But it is not just the pollsters who had it wrong. None of the Conservative and Labour MPs POLITICO spoke to in the final days of the campaign predicted this. Jim Messina, the election data guru who helped Barack Obama reach the White House and a member of May’s team, declared on Twitter on May 31 after YouGov’s new modeling first projected a hung parliament that he was “laughing at yet another stupid YouGov poll.” 
 
 Newspapers and broadcasters also failed to pick up on the scale of the Labour surge coming down the track. Labour did however, dominate on social media channels. According to Campaign magazine, it had a much higher level of engagement on Facebook — around 80,000 to 100,000 engagements daily in the last week of the campaign, compared 30,000 to 40,000 for the Conservatives. 
 
 Obviously you can’t tell who’s winning by looking at social media, but nor it seems can you tell by looking at most polls. 
 
 3. Brexit democratic revolution ain’t over 
 
 Turnout, as of 6 a.m., was 68.7 percent — the highest in a U.K. general election since Tony Blair’s landslide win in 1997. It seems likely the high figure can be attributed, in part, to many who voted in Britain’s EU referendum for the first time voting again. 
 
 It is also likely, though we will have to wait for detailed demographic information, that Corbyn’s popularity among young voters — as demonstrated in all polls — motivated a higher youth turnout than normal. Just 43 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds voted in 2015. Estimates of how many voted in the EU referendum vary, but it seems to have been far higher, perhaps as high as 70 percent. The vast majority backed Remain and may have felt like a vote for Corbyn — despite his embrace of Brexit — was a vote for revenge on the older generations, a large majority of whom back Brexit and the Conservatives. 
 
 It was those polling companies that did the least to down-weigh the voting intentions of young respondents that came closest to the actual vote share margins — the revenge of Britain’s youth. 
 
 4. Big beasts fallen 
 
 At every election, amid the cheers of the victors, Britain rings to the dying moans of many a big beast’s political life. 2017 was no exception. 
 
 Several Conservative ministers fell to the Labour surge. Cabinet Office Minister Ben Gummer, an influential figure in May’s short-lived first administration, lost his Ipswich seat to Labour’s Sandy Martin. Health Minister Nicola Blackwood lost her strongly Remain-voting Oxford West seat to the pro-EU Liberal Democrats’ candidate Layla Moran. Labour’s hugely successful night in London saw Treasury Minister Jane Ellison lose her Battersea seat to Labour opponent Marsha de Cordova. 
 
 Elsewhere, the former Liberal Democrat leader, and one of parliament’s leading experts on the EU, Nick Clegg, lost his Sheffield Hallam seat to Labour. Clegg, whose support in the area plummeted after he took the Lib Dems into coalition with the Conservatives in 2010, was run close in 2015 and lost the seat this time by more than 2,000 votes. He said the new parliament would preside over “a deeply, deeply divided and polarized nation” — most of all “between young and old.” 
 
 In Scotland, the SNP’s bad night was compounded by losing its former leader Alex Salmond from parliament, along with its Westminster leader Angus Robertson. Their Brexit spokesman, Stephen Gethins, clung on in Fife North East by just two votes. 
 
 5. Sweet revenge 
 
 “What are we doing losing Battersea!?” asked George Osborne, aghast. 
 
 His decision to join ITV’s election night coverage gave the country a hugely enjoyable study of a scorned man, vindicated. The former chancellor, the man who was once the smart betters’ choice for next prime minister, was sacked by Theresa May less than a year ago after he and David Cameron botched the EU referendum. She reportedly told him to “get to know the party better.” 
 
 Osborne, who advised against holding a referendum in the first place, and helped to mastermind the Tories’ successful 2015 campaign, must be tempted to suggest that instead May spend some time getting to know the country better. 
 
 Now the editor of the London Evening Standard, Osborne appeared on ITV’s panel with his former opponent, Labour’s ex-Shadow Chancellor Ed Balls. 
 
 He didn’t pull his punches. On seeing the shock exit poll that projected a hung parliament, he made the early call of a “catastrophic” night for his party. 
 
 Later, in the early hours of the morning, he let rip at May and the team of advisers who ousted him. The Conservative manifesto 2017 “which was drafted by her and about two other people, was a total disaster and must go down now as one of the worst manifestos in history by a governing party. 
 
 “I say one of the worst, I can’t think of a worse one.” 
 
 A dish of revenge served cold for Theresa May’s breakfast. ||||| The Democratic Unionist Party, whose controversial policies include blocking gay marriage, could hold the balance of power in the new Parliament. 
 
 The Northern Irish party looks likely to give the Conservatives its support to form a government. 
 
 If it manages to become part of the government and hold it up, however, it may be able to introduce the kinds of policies that have become controversial in Northern Ireland. 
 
 Shape Created with Sketch. UK Election Day 2017 Show all 38 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. UK Election Day 2017 1/38 Door of Number 10 Downing Street is seen on the morning after Britain's election in London REUTERS 2/38 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn leaves his home in north London after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should "go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country" PA 3/38 Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell arrives at Labour Headquarters on June 9, 2017 in London, England. After a snap election was called by Prime Minister Theresa May the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday. The closely fought election has failed to return a clear overall majority winner and a hung parliament has been declared Getty Images 4/38 Caroline Lucas, co-leader of Britain's Green Party, speaks after retaining her seat in the general election, in Brighton REUTERS 5/38 Patrons watch the results for Britain's election in London REUTERS 6/38 Leader of the Liberal democrats Tim Farron celebrates beating Conservative party candidate James Airey (R) following the announcement of the results at the Westmoorland and Lonsdale constituency count at Kendal Leisure Centre on June 9, 2017 in Kendal, United Kingdom. After a snap election was called, the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday following a closely fought election. The results from across the country are being counted and an overall result is expected in the early hours Getty Images 7/38 Paul Nuttal, leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party reacts after failing to win the seat of Boston and Skegness at the counting centre for Britain's general election in Boston REUTERS 8/38 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon arrives at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election. PA 9/38 Anna McMorrin hugs Jo Stevens MP after winning Cardiff North for Labour at the Sport Wales National Centre on June 9, 2017 in Cardiff, United Kingdom. After a snap election was called, the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday following a closely fought election. The results from across the country are being counted and an overall result is expected in the early hours Getty Images 10/38 Vince Cable wins the Twickenham election for the Liberal Democrats. Richmond and Twickenham election Rex Features 11/38 Britain's Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn rubs his face after arriving for the declaration at his constituency in London AP 12/38 Emily Thornberry speaks after holding her Islington South and Finsbury seat at the Sobell Leisure Centre in Islington, north London PA 13/38 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May listens as the declaration at her constituency is made for in the general election in Maidenhead, England, Friday, June 9, 2017. British Prime Minister Theresa May's gamble in calling an early election appeared Friday to have backfired spectacularly, after an exit poll suggested her Conservative Party could lose its majority in Parliament AP 14/38 Labour Party candidate Emily Thornberry smiles at a counting centre for BritainâÃÃ´s general election in London REUTERS 15/38 A picture shows the Elizabeth Tower, commonly referred to as Big Ben, and the Houses of Parliament in central London on June 8, 2017, on the night of Britain's general election. Prime Minister Theresa May is poised to win Britain's snap election but lose her parliamentary majority, a shock exit poll suggested on June 8, in what would be a major blow for her leadership as Brexit talks loom AFP/Getty Images 16/38 DUP candidate for Lagan Valley Jeffrey Donaldson celebrates following his election at the Eikon Exhibition Centre in Lisburn as counting is under way for the General Election PA 17/38 Britain's Home Secretary Amber Rudd attends the count for her seat at a counting centre for Britain's general election in Hastings REUTERS 18/38 Ballots are counted at a counting centre for BritainâÃÃ´s general election in London Reuters 19/38 The London Eye is illuminated in blue, representing the Conservative Party, after the first exit polls announced in Britain's general election AP 20/38 Election officials count votes in the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA 21/38 The London Eye is illuminated in red, the color of the Labour Party, after first exit polls of Britain's national election announced in London AP 22/38 BBC Television centre is illuminated with the exit poll results for Britain’s general election Eddie Keogh/Reuters 23/38 Labour’s Bridget Phillipson (centre) smiles after being announced as the winner of the election for the constituency of Houghton and Sunderland South at a counting centre Reuters 24/38 Members of the election staff prepare to count ballots, in Theresa May’s constituency in Maidenhead AP 25/38 Ballot papers are checked ahead of the count at the Westmoorland and Lonsdale constituency count at Kendal Leisure Centre Getty 26/38 Ballots are counted at a counting centre for Britain’s general election in Kendal Reuters 27/38 Theresa May arrives to vote at a polling station in Maidenhead AP 28/38 Jeremy Corbyn arrives to cast his ballot at a polling station in north London EPA 29/38 Lib Dems leader Tim Farron outside a polling station at Stonecross Manor Hotel in Kendal, Cumbria PA 30/38 The leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party (Ukip) Paul Nuttall arrives to vote at a polling station in Congleton Reuters 31/38 Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon with her husband Peter Murrell (left) the CEO of the SNP after casting their votes at a polling station at Broomhouse Community Hall, Glasgow, Scotland EPA 32/38 Caroline Lucas, co-leader of Britain’s Green Party, arrives with her husband Richard Savage, to vote in Brighton Reuters 33/38 An advertising van showing caricatures of Tim Farron, Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn and Paul Nuttall with the message who will be looking for a new job as Britain goes to the polls to elect a new government Rex 34/38 Performers pose with puppet caricatures of Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, leader of the Liberal Democrat Party Tim Farron and leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn, in front of the Palace of Westminster Reuters 35/38 Dogs wait for their owner outside a polling station in Penally, Wales Reuters 36/38 Police officers speak with a Labour Party activist outside a polling station in London AP 37/38 Benedictine nuns from Tyburn Convent leave after voting in Britain's general election at a polling station in St John's Parish Hall, London AP 38/38 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty 1/38 Door of Number 10 Downing Street is seen on the morning after Britain's election in London REUTERS 2/38 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn leaves his home in north London after he called on the Prime Minister to resign, saying she should "go and make way for a government that is truly representative of this country" PA 3/38 Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell arrives at Labour Headquarters on June 9, 2017 in London, England. After a snap election was called by Prime Minister Theresa May the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday. The closely fought election has failed to return a clear overall majority winner and a hung parliament has been declared Getty Images 4/38 Caroline Lucas, co-leader of Britain's Green Party, speaks after retaining her seat in the general election, in Brighton REUTERS 5/38 Patrons watch the results for Britain's election in London REUTERS 6/38 Leader of the Liberal democrats Tim Farron celebrates beating Conservative party candidate James Airey (R) following the announcement of the results at the Westmoorland and Lonsdale constituency count at Kendal Leisure Centre on June 9, 2017 in Kendal, United Kingdom. After a snap election was called, the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday following a closely fought election. The results from across the country are being counted and an overall result is expected in the early hours Getty Images 7/38 Paul Nuttal, leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party reacts after failing to win the seat of Boston and Skegness at the counting centre for Britain's general election in Boston REUTERS 8/38 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon arrives at the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, as counting is under way for the General Election. PA 9/38 Anna McMorrin hugs Jo Stevens MP after winning Cardiff North for Labour at the Sport Wales National Centre on June 9, 2017 in Cardiff, United Kingdom. After a snap election was called, the United Kingdom went to the polls yesterday following a closely fought election. The results from across the country are being counted and an overall result is expected in the early hours Getty Images 10/38 Vince Cable wins the Twickenham election for the Liberal Democrats. Richmond and Twickenham election Rex Features 11/38 Britain's Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn rubs his face after arriving for the declaration at his constituency in London AP 12/38 Emily Thornberry speaks after holding her Islington South and Finsbury seat at the Sobell Leisure Centre in Islington, north London PA 13/38 Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May listens as the declaration at her constituency is made for in the general election in Maidenhead, England, Friday, June 9, 2017. British Prime Minister Theresa May's gamble in calling an early election appeared Friday to have backfired spectacularly, after an exit poll suggested her Conservative Party could lose its majority in Parliament AP 14/38 Labour Party candidate Emily Thornberry smiles at a counting centre for BritainâÃÃ´s general election in London REUTERS 15/38 A picture shows the Elizabeth Tower, commonly referred to as Big Ben, and the Houses of Parliament in central London on June 8, 2017, on the night of Britain's general election. Prime Minister Theresa May is poised to win Britain's snap election but lose her parliamentary majority, a shock exit poll suggested on June 8, in what would be a major blow for her leadership as Brexit talks loom AFP/Getty Images 16/38 DUP candidate for Lagan Valley Jeffrey Donaldson celebrates following his election at the Eikon Exhibition Centre in Lisburn as counting is under way for the General Election PA 17/38 Britain's Home Secretary Amber Rudd attends the count for her seat at a counting centre for Britain's general election in Hastings REUTERS 18/38 Ballots are counted at a counting centre for BritainâÃÃ´s general election in London Reuters 19/38 The London Eye is illuminated in blue, representing the Conservative Party, after the first exit polls announced in Britain's general election AP 20/38 Election officials count votes in the Emirates Arena in Glasgow, Scotland EPA 21/38 The London Eye is illuminated in red, the color of the Labour Party, after first exit polls of Britain's national election announced in London AP 22/38 BBC Television centre is illuminated with the exit poll results for Britain’s general election Eddie Keogh/Reuters 23/38 Labour’s Bridget Phillipson (centre) smiles after being announced as the winner of the election for the constituency of Houghton and Sunderland South at a counting centre Reuters 24/38 Members of the election staff prepare to count ballots, in Theresa May’s constituency in Maidenhead AP 25/38 Ballot papers are checked ahead of the count at the Westmoorland and Lonsdale constituency count at Kendal Leisure Centre Getty 26/38 Ballots are counted at a counting centre for Britain’s general election in Kendal Reuters 27/38 Theresa May arrives to vote at a polling station in Maidenhead AP 28/38 Jeremy Corbyn arrives to cast his ballot at a polling station in north London EPA 29/38 Lib Dems leader Tim Farron outside a polling station at Stonecross Manor Hotel in Kendal, Cumbria PA 30/38 The leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party (Ukip) Paul Nuttall arrives to vote at a polling station in Congleton Reuters 31/38 Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon with her husband Peter Murrell (left) the CEO of the SNP after casting their votes at a polling station at Broomhouse Community Hall, Glasgow, Scotland EPA 32/38 Caroline Lucas, co-leader of Britain’s Green Party, arrives with her husband Richard Savage, to vote in Brighton Reuters 33/38 An advertising van showing caricatures of Tim Farron, Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn and Paul Nuttall with the message who will be looking for a new job as Britain goes to the polls to elect a new government Rex 34/38 Performers pose with puppet caricatures of Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, leader of the Liberal Democrat Party Tim Farron and leader of the Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn, in front of the Palace of Westminster Reuters 35/38 Dogs wait for their owner outside a polling station in Penally, Wales Reuters 36/38 Police officers speak with a Labour Party activist outside a polling station in London AP 37/38 Benedictine nuns from Tyburn Convent leave after voting in Britain's general election at a polling station in St John's Parish Hall, London AP 38/38 A polling station sign is seen on a telephone box outside the polling station at Rotherwick Hall, west of London Getty 
 
 That has included moves by the party to oppose the introduction of same sex marriage in Northern Ireland, as well as lifting the ban on abortion. Those laws have been in place across the rest of the UK, but the DUP has helped block them in Northern Ireland in recent years. 
 
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 Leader Arlene Foster all but confirmed that the DUP would never join a coalition with Labour. She said that she had “always said” the party would find it hard to work with Jeremy Corbyn. 
 
 The party, alongside Sinn Fein, has made strong gains in the election at the expense of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and the Alliance Party. 
 
 The DUP replaced the SDLP in South Belfast, wrested back South Antrim from the Ulster Unionist Party and saw off the challenge of the Alliance Party and Sinn Fein in East and North Belfast respectively. 
 
 With speculation the DUP could hold an influential position in Westminster, party leader Arlene Foster declared it a “good night for the Union”. 
 
 She said: “We’ll wait to hear what the results actually are, but we are very pleased with the way in which people have reacted to the positive message of the campaign – it was about the Union, the importance of the Union, and unionists have really come out in their numbers. 
 
 “We fought this election on the importance of the Union and I think people really responded to that.” 
 
 
 
 The Independent has launched its #FinalSay campaign to demand that voters are given a voice on the final Brexit deal. 
 
 
 
 Sign our petition here ||||| Votes cast in the general election are counted in Islington in London, shortly after the polls closed Thursday, June 8, 2017. Exit polls projected that Theresa May's ruling Conservatives would be the... (Associated Press) 
 
 LONDON (AP) — Spectacularly punished by voters who took away her majority in parliament, a politically wounded Theresa May sought to soldier on Friday as Britain's prime minister, resisting pressure to resign after the failure of her high-stakes election gamble made the massive challenge of untangling Britain from the European Union only more complex and uncertain. 
 
 Having called an early election in hopes of getting an increased majority that could have strengthened her hand in Britain's exit talks with the EU, May instead saw her majority evaporate completely — leaving her fortunes hanging by a thread. 
 
 Still, rather than resign, May clung to the hope that her Conservatives might still be able to govern by making deals with another party or group of parties. She was planning to seek Queen Elizabeth II's approval — a largely symbolic step — to form a government later Friday. 
 
 The shock result and the prospect that the EU will now be negotiating with a shaky British government cast dark clouds over the Brexit negotiations just 10 days before they are due to start. The pound lost more than 3 cents against the dollar. 
 
 With 649 of 650 seats in the House of Commons declared, May's bruised Conservatives had 318 seats — short of the 326 they needed for an outright majority and well down from the 330 seats they had before May's roll of the electoral dice. Labour has 261. 
 
 The recriminations were immediate and stinging. 
 
 "This is a very bad moment for the Conservative Party, and we need to take stock," Conservative lawmaker Anna Soubry said. "And our leader needs to take stock as well." 
 
 Left-wing Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was among those calling on May to resign, said Friday morning that people have had enough of austerity politics and cuts in public spending. He ruled out the potential for deals or pacts with other progressive parties in Parliament. 
 
 "The arguments the Conservative Party put forward in this election have lost, and we need to change." 
 
 The results confounded those who said Corbyn was electorally toxic. Written off by many pollsters, Labour surged in the final weeks of the campaign. It drew strong support from young people, who appeared to have turned out to vote in bigger-than-expected numbers. 
 
 As she was resoundingly re-elected to her Maidenhead seat in southern England, May looked tense and did not spell out what she planned to do. 
 
 "The country needs a period of stability, and whatever the results are the Conservative Party will ensure we fulfill our duty in ensuring that stability," she said. 
 
 Many predicted she would soon be gone. 
 
 "Clearly if she's got a worse result than two years ago and is almost unable to form a government, then she, I doubt, will survive in the long term as Conservative Party leader," former Conservative Treasury chief George Osborne said on ITV. 
 
 British media reported later Friday that May had no intention of resigning. 
 
 The result was bad news for the Scottish National Party, which lost about 20 of its 54 seats. Among the casualties was Alex Salmond, a former first minister of Scotland and one of the party's highest-profile lawmakers. 
 
 The losses complicate the SNP's plans to push for a new referendum on Scottish independence as Britain prepares to leave the EU. Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said the idea of a new independence referendum "is dead. That's what we have seen tonight." 
 
 May had hoped the election would focus on Brexit, but that never happened, as both the Conservatives and Labour said they would respect voters' wishes and go through with the divorce. 
 
 Despite the surprise election result, French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said he doesn't believe voters have changed their minds about leaving. 
 
 But speaking Friday on Europe 1 radio, he said "the tone" of negotiations may be affected. 
 
 "These are discussions that will be long and that will be complex. So let's not kid ourselves," he said. "I'm not sure that we should read, from the results of this vote, that Britons' sovereign decision on Brexit has been cast into doubt in any way." 
 
 EU budget commissioner Guenther Oettinger said the EU is prepared to stick to the timetable that calls for negotiations to start in mid-June, but said it would take a few hours at least to see how the results of the election play out in forming a government. 
 
 "Without a government, there's no negotiation," he said Friday morning by phone on Germany's Deutschlandfunk radio. 
 
 May, who went into the election with a reputation for quiet competence, was criticized for a lackluster campaigning style and for a plan to force elderly people to pay more for their care, a proposal her opponents dubbed the "dementia tax." As the polls suggested a tightening race, pollsters spoke less often of a landslide and raised the possibility that May's majority would be eroded. 
 
 Then, attacks in Manchester and London that killed a total of 30 people brought the campaign to a halt — twice, sent a wave of anxiety through Britain and forced May to defend the government's record on fighting terrorism. Corbyn accused the Conservatives of undermining Britain's security by cutting the number of police on the streets. 
 
 Eight people were killed near London Bridge on Saturday when three men drove a van into pedestrians and then stabbed revelers in an area filled with bars and restaurants. Two weeks earlier, a suicide bomber killed 22 people as they were leaving an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester. 
 
 Voters were left flustered Friday by the fast-moving events. 
 
 "It's a bit of a mess," Peter Morgan, 35, said in London. "I was kind of hoping it would just go the way that the polls suggested it would and we could have a quiet life in Westminster but now it's going to be a bit of a mess." 
 
 Steven Fielding, a professor of politics at the University of Nottingham, said Britain had seen an election "in which the personal authority of a party leader has disappeared in an unprecedented way." 
 
 "If she had got the majority she wanted, she would have been a supreme political colossus," he said. "She did not get that and she's a hugely diminished figure. She's a zombie prime minister." 
 
 ___ 
 
 Gregory Katz, Sophie Berman and Niko Price contributed to this story. ||||| Democratic Unionist Party leader Peter Robinson, center, celebrates with his general election candidates Nigel Dodds, left, Gavin Robinson, 2nd right, and Jeffrey Donaldson, front right, after they were... (Associated Press) 
 
 LONDON (AP) — 12:20 p.m. (1120 GMT; 7:20 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Ed Miliband, the leader of Britain's Labour Party, says he will step down after a worse-than-expected result in the election. 
 
 The party lost dozens of seats to the separatist Scottish National Party, which took almost all of the 59 seats in Scotland. 
 
 Speaking to party members who cheered in support, Miliband said Friday he wanted to resign straight away so that the party can rebuild itself. 
 
 With 641 of 650 seats counted, Labour has 229 seats, finishing well below the 258 seats secured five years ago by former leader and ex-Prime Minister Gordon Brown. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11:45 a.m. (1045 GMT; 6:45 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Nick Clegg has resigned as leader of Britain's Liberal Democrats after a disastrous result for his party in the election. 
 
 Clegg said he must take responsibility for the party's losses, which he described as much more crushing that he expected. 
 
 The Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives' junior coalition partner, lost most of the seats they held in Parliament. Many of their most senior and experienced politicians lost their seats. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11:40 a.m. (1040 GMT; 6:40 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Nigel Farage has resigned as leader of the populist U.K. Independence Party after failed to win a seat in the U.K. parliamentary election. 
 
 Farage, who had earlier promised to resign if he lost, told activists "I'm a man of my word." 
 
 But he raised the prospect he would consider running again in the future. 
 
 ___ 
 
 11:30 a.m. (1030 GMT; 6:30 a.m. EDT) 
 
 British Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives have secured enough seats to form a majority government. 
 
 Results from Thursday's election show that the Conservatives won at least 324 of the House of Commons' 650 seats, enough to form a slim majority government. 
 
 The Conservatives are ahead of their main rival, the Labour Party, which lost dozens of seats to the separatist Scottish National Party. 
 
 The win makes Cameron the first Conservative prime minister to win a second term since Margaret Thatcher. 
 
 Cameron stopped just short of declaring overall victory earlier Friday, saying he hoped to govern "one nation, one United Kingdom" if he was fortunate enough to continue as prime minister. 
 
 ___ 
 
 10:40 a.m. (0940 GMT; 5:40 a.m. EDT) 
 
 The United Kingdom Independence Party leader, Nigel Farage, has lost his bid to win a seat in Parliament and could resign despite his right-wing party's surge to third in the popular vote nationwide. 
 
 Farage finished second to Conservative Party candidate Craig Mackinlay, a former UKIP activist, in the South Thanet constituency east of London as results were announced Friday. 
 
 Before the result, Farage had pledged to quit as UKIP leader if he failed to win the seat. He decried the British electoral system's use of winner-takes-all constituencies. UKIP received nearly 3.8 million votes, but finished second or third in dozens of districts. 
 
 Farage said before the result: "The system is bust. You've got a first-past-the-post system where we clearly become the third party in Britain but get hardly any seats." 
 
 __ 
 
 9:25 a.m. (0825 GMT; 4:25 a.m. EDT) 
 
 With Prime Minister David Cameron on the brink of a majority for another five years of Conservative government in the U.K, markets seemed buoyed by prospect of avoiding weeks of political wrangling for power. 
 
 Mark Dampier, head of investment research at Hargreaves Lansdown stockbrokers, says that "business as usual might be the order of the day from this election result. 
 
 But markets are likely to be concerned over the next two years about the prospect of a referendum on whether or not to leave the European Union. 
 
 HSBC economists Simon Wells and Liz Martins say a referendum on EU membership by end-2017 now seems much more likely. 
 
 ___ 
 
 8:55 a.m. (0755 GMT; 3:55 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Prime Minister David Cameron's office says he is going to Buckingham Palace later Friday to see Queen Elizabeth II. 
 
 Downing Street says that will take place at 12:30p.m. (1130 GMT). 
 
 He is expected to tell her that he has enough support in Parliament to form a government. 
 
 ___ 
 
 8:45 a.m. (0745 GMT; 3:45 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Another big Labour figure has fallen in U.K. national elections, as the party's Treasury spokesman, Ed Balls, lost his seat in northern England to the Conservatives by 422 votes. 
 
 Had Labour won, Balls would have been finance minister. 
 
 He said that "any personal disappointment I have at this result is as nothing as compared to the sense of sorrow I have at the result Labour has achieved ... and the sense of concern I have about the future." 
 
 Balls said Britain faces "five years where questions will arise about the future of our union, about whether we can stay as a member of the European Union and fight for jobs and investment, whether we can make sure we secure our National Health Service at a time when public spending is cut." 
 
 ___ 
 
 8:35 a.m. (0735 GMT; 3:35 a.m. EDT) 
 
 British voters are reacting with surprise as they wake to the news that Prime Minister David Cameron may headed toward a Parliamentary majority. Polls have been showing a virtual dead heat in the race, and many expected weeks of wrangling over who would be in power. 
 
 Account manager Nicky Kelly-Lord, 38, is among those startled by the result. "I thought it would be closer," she says. 
 
 But some, like project manager Jonathan Heeley, 42, thought of it as inevitable that a country dealing with the wake of the 2008 financial crisis would be anxious to keep the economic recovery going. Heeley says, "the country's rebuilding itself and people want to stay with that, that's my opinion." 
 
 ___ 
 
 7:55 a.m. (0655 GMT, 2:55 a.m. EDT) 
 
 All night, famous political faces and household names in Britain had to stand on stages at vote counting centers to hear they had lost their seats in Parliament. 
 
 Douglas Alexander, who directed the opposition Labour's campaign and would have been Britain's foreign secretary if they had won, was defeated by a 20-year-old student from the Scottish National Party. 
 
 The Liberal Democrats suffered the worst, as almost their entire top team — many of them government ministers — was felled. Casualties included Business Secretary Vince Cable, chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, Energy Secretary Ed Davey and high-profile lawmakers Lynne Featherstone and Simon Hughes. 
 
 "This has been a terrible night for our party all over," Cable said. "But I am absolutely sure that we are going to bounce back." 
 
 Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg kept his own seat but was meeting with colleagues Friday to figure out whether he will resign. 
 
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 7:45 a.m. (0645 GMT, 2:45 a.m. EDT) 
 
 All seats in Scotland have been counted in Britain's latest vote, making clear the scale of the landslide by the Scottish National Party, which captured 56 of the region's 59 seats. 
 
 That was a gain of 50 seats over the nationalists' previous six seats in the 650-seat House of Commons. 
 
 The opposition Labour Party lost 40 seats in Scotland. The result left the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats with just one seat each in Scotland. 
 
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 7:20 a.m. (0620 GMT, 2:20 a.m. EDT) 
 
 With 568 of 650 constituencies reporting results Friday morning in Britain's parliamentary election, the Conservatives were leading with 269 seats, according to election officials. 
 
 The opposition Labour Party has won 214 seats and the Scottish National Party 55. Eight seats have gone to the Democratic Unionists in Northern Ireland and to the Liberal Democrats, and the U.K. Independence Party has earned one seat. Thirteen seats went to other smaller parties. 
 
 An exit poll has predicted that the Conservatives will be the top party in Thursday's vote and the chief pollster says the Conservatives may even capture a majority of the 650 seats in the House of Commons. 
 
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 7 a.m. (0600 GMT, 2 a.m. EDT) 
 
 With 508 of 650 constituencies reporting results Friday morning in Britain's parliamentary election, the Conservatives were leading with 222 seats, according to election officials. 
 
 The opposition Labour Party has won 203 seats and the Scottish National Party 55. Eight seats have gone to the Democratic Unionists in Northern Ireland, while the Liberal Democrats won six seats and the U.K. Independence Party earned one. Thirteen seats went to other smaller parties. 
 
 An exit poll has predicted that the Conservatives will be the top party in Thursday's vote, winning 316 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons. 
 
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 6:40 a.m. (0540 GMT, 1:40 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Labour leader Ed Miliband has acknowledged that his party is facing likely defeat in Britain's general election. 
 
 He says "This has clearly been a very disappointing and difficult night for the Labour Party." 
 
 Miliband won his own Doncaster North seat, but Labour looks set to win fewer than the 256 seats it held before the election. It has been all but wiped out in Scotland, a former stronghold, as voters defected in droves to the Scottish National Party. 
 
 Miliband said "we haven't made the gains that we'd wanted in England and Wales and in Scotland we have seen a surge of nationalism overwhelm our party." 
 
 He said whoever is prime minister in the next government would face the challenge of uniting Britain after a divisive campaign. 
 
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 6:25 a.m. (0525 GMT, 1:25 a.m. EDT) 
 
 George Galloway, one of Britain's most colorful and controversial figures, has lost his Bradford West seat to the Labour Party. 
 
 Galloway, an outspoken critic of Israel and the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, won the seat from Labour in a 2012 special election. But some locals accused the left-wing firebrand — who once saluted Saddam Hussein and has appeared on a reality-TV show pretending to be a cat — of spending little time in Bradford, which has a large Muslim population. 
 
 The candidate from the tiny Respect Party lost by a wide margin to Labour's Naz Shah after a bitter campaign in the northern England city. Shah is a political newcomer who has overcome childhood poverty, a teenage forced marriage and the imprisonment of her mother for killing an abusive partner. 
 
 Shah had urged voters to reject Galloway because "we do not need a one-man Messiah to tell us how to come and fix up Bradford." 
 
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 6:15 a.m. (0515 GMT, 1:15 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Prime Minister David Cameron has easily won his Witney seat in southern England, and stopped just short for declaring overall election victory for his Conservatives. 
 
 He told voters "this is clearly a very strong night for the Conservative Party." 
 
 Results seem to support an exit poll's prediction the Tories will be the biggest seat in the House of Commons and may even win a majority of seats. 
 
 A Conservative-led government would face a divided Britain, with the pro-independence Scottish National Party holding almost all the seats north of the border. Cameron has vowed to counter the rise of Scottish nationalism with more powers for Scotland and Wales within the United Kingdom. 
 
 He says "I want my party, and I hope a government that I would like to lead, to reclaim a mantle that we should never have lost — the mantle of one nation, one United Kingdom." 
 
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 5:40 a.m. (0440 GMT, 12:40 a.m. EDT) 
 
 Liberal Democrat Party leader Nick Clegg managed to hang on to his seat in Parliament when results were announced Friday morning, but admitted that his party had suffered a terrible string of setbacks in Britain's general election. 
 
 The party that had been the junior partner in a Conservative-led government lost most of its seats. An exit poll suggested it would win perhaps 10 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons — down from 56 — and several major party figures were ousted by voters. 
 
 After his own win, a woeful Clegg said "It is now painfully clear this has been a cruel and punishing night for the Liberal Democrats." Clegg, who has served as the U.K.'s deputy prime minister for the last five years, hinted that he would be discussing his party leadership with colleges later Friday. 
 
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 5 a.m. (0400 GMT, midnight EDT) 
 
 He's back. London Mayor Boris Johnson has once again won a seat in parliament, this time representing voters in the Uxbridge and Ruislip South district, as Conservative Party candidates did much better than expected in Britain's election. 
 
 The shaggy-haired mayor, seen as a possible future Conservative Party leader, had previously represented Henley. 
 
 "The people of Britain, after a long and exhausting campaign, have finally spoken," he said early Friday. "They have decisively rejected any attempt to take this country back to the 1970s. They want us to go forward with the sensible, moderate policies that have led to a sustained economic recovery." 
 
 Johnson will do both jobs until voters choose a new London mayor in 2016. ||||| Photo Advertisement Continue reading the main story 
 
 LONDON — BBC Radio 4 had a laconic, one-word weather forecast Wednesday morning: “changeable.” 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 But the political forecast for Thursday’s British election has been stagnant for some time: a hung Parliament, with no party able to command a clear majority from a fragmented and skeptical electorate. 
 
 On the final day of campaigning, party leaders crisscrossed the country regardless, trying to swing the results of one of the tightest elections here in decades. 
 
 Prime Minister David Cameron of the Conservative Party was in northwest England, Scotland and the Midlands on a 36-hour bus tour, visiting marginal constituencies that could be decided by handfuls of votes. Citing gradual economic improvement during his five years in office, he appealed for support to “finish the job” and warned that the opposition Labour Party would blow apart the budget and be beholden to the more left-wing Scottish National Party. 
 
 Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, was in northern England, where his party is usually strong, visiting marginal districts held by the Conservatives. He repeated his main campaign themes: Working people deserve a better deal, the rich should pay more taxes and the National Health Service is in danger. 
 
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 The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Nick Clegg, who serves in Mr. Cameron’s coalition government as deputy prime minister, was traversing Britain from south to north on his own long tour, from Land’s End in Cornwall to John O’Groats in Scotland, arguing that his centrist party was needed to keep a brake on the others and provide political stability to any new government. 
 
 The final polls suggest that the country remains deeply divided, that neither the Conservatives nor Labour has a clear advantage and that many voters are dispirited by the choice in front of them. 
 
 “I’m a bit sick of it all; it all sounds the same,” said Gayle Lazda, 29, who works in a London bookshop. “They have that way of speaking where it all sounds meaningless, and I can’t be bothered to listen. I don’t pretend to myself that it’s going to make a difference.” 
 
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 Greg Pittard, a film editor, called the campaign lackluster even as he noted the rise of smaller parties offering new approaches. “Another day, another gimmick, and it’s just not satisfying,” he said. “The only interesting aspect is that different voices are breaking through. In that sense, it’s exciting.” 
 
 All three main party leaders were essentially trying to manage the consequences of their likely inability to claim a clear victory, while maneuvering to see how they could form or join a government that could survive more than a few months. 
 
 A number of models suggest that the two main parties will roughly split two-thirds of the vote. The Conservatives are projected to win the largest number of seats, but short of the 326 seats needed to form a majority (the number falls to 323 if Sinn Fein, which does not take its seats in Parliament, keeps its current five seats; the speaker does not normally vote). The Conservatives may even be unable to achieve a majority in combination with their current coalition partners, the Liberal Democrats, plus the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party and the tacit support of the U.K. Independence Party. 
 
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 Labour is projected to do well in England but suffer a blowout in Scotland, losing many of its 41 seats there to the Scottish National Party. The Scottish party’s resurgence under its new leader, Nicola Sturgeon, since losing Scotland’s independence referendum last year has been the most striking shift of the campaign. A big setback in Scotland could deny Labour the chance to win the most seats and more easily form a government. But it is possible that Mr. Miliband could end up as prime minister anyway, supported by a hodgepodge of anti-Tory parties, including the Scottish nationalists. 
 
 That possibility has led to a debate, led by Mr. Cameron and his supporters, about the “legitimacy” of a second-place party forming a government, but the rules are clear: Any party that can form a majority in Parliament has the right to govern. Not since 1923 has a second-place party managed to form a government; that government lasted less than a year. 
 
 Labour’s opponents have also argued that any government that relied on support from the Scottish nationalists would lack credibility, since it would be dependent on the votes of a party that is committed to an independent Scotland. 
 
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 Labour has said that it will make no formal deal with the Scots, though Mr. Miliband has signaled that if it came time to test whether he could command a majority, he would simply put his party’s program to Parliament and dare the Scottish National Party to vote against it. 
 
 In 2010, the Conservatives won 306 seats, Labour 258, the Liberal Democrats 57 and the Scottish National Party six. 
 
 To form a government, the Conservatives are thought to need around 290 seats this time — 300 would almost certainly be enough to allow them to continue in office in partnership with the Liberal Democrats. But many projections have them at around 280 seats, with the Liberal Democrats getting fewer than 30. So even with the Democratic Unionists and the U.K. Independence Party, expected to get at least a tenth of the vote but only a handful of seats, Mr. Cameron may find himself short of a majority. 
 
 Continue reading the main story Follow the British Elections Get the latest political analysis and news from Britain and top headlines from around the world delivered to your inbox every day in the European morning. 
 
 The same projections have Labour at 266 seats or so — meaning it would need to gain the support of the Liberal Democrats and also the Scottish National Party, which polls suggest could win 50 of Scotland’s 59 seats. The S.N.P. is farther to the left than Labour and wants more spending than Labour considers wise. The parties also disagree fundamentally on Britain’s nuclear deterrent, which the Scottish nationalists want to scrap. 
 
 Still, the S.N.P. and other smaller parties have vowed to keep the Conservatives out of Downing Street, and together with Labour, they may command a majority big enough to do that, even if the Tories get the most seats. 
 
 Mr. Cameron, who remains prime minister until he resigns or Parliament votes a motion of no confidence, could hold on until May 27, the date of the Queen’s Speech, which formally opens the new Parliament and sets out the projected government agenda. 
 
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 But if the election returns are bad for him, he might resign beforehand. Everyone will start doing the math by about dawn on Friday, but the leadership and composition of the next government may not be clear for at least a week and possibly more. 
 
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 The campaign has focused almost exclusively on domestic issues, but the outcome of the election will be important for other big questions, too. 
 
 Mr. Cameron vows to hold a referendum on continued British membership in the European Union by the end of 2017 and wants to get back more control over some issues from Brussels; Mr. Miliband has avoided backing a referendum and argues that Britain is better off in Europe, so long as new powers are not transferred to the Continent. 
 
 Both main parties also acknowledge that they will continue to cut military spending, which is already slipping below the NATO guideline of 2 percent of gross domestic product. And there is an increasing sense, especially in Washington, that Britain is slipping away from its close partnership with the United States, particularly on military matters. 
 
 A “Little England,” as Jeremy Shapiro of the Brookings Institution wrote recently, “does not augur well for a U.S. foreign policy which aims specifically to empower like-minded states to share the burdens of leadership.” 
 
 Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 10 p.m. A nationwide exit poll, shared by all the national networks, will be released soon after the polls close. ||||| It's difficult to catch everything during an election night whirlwind of facts, stats and spin. Beyond the immediate headlines, here are 20 things you may have missed. 
 
 1. High-profile scalps 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption The moment Nick Clegg lost his seat 
 
 The SNP has suffered some of the night's biggest losses. Former leader Alex Salmond, who was Scotland's first minister between 2007 and 2014, lost his Gordon seat to the Scottish Conservatives. The SNP leader in Westminster, Angus Robertson, also lost his Moray seat to the Tories. 
 
 Former Lib Dem Leader and deputy PM Nick Clegg also suffered a fall from grace. He looked visibly upset when he lost his Sheffield Hallam seat - which he had held for 12 years - to Labour. But his departure didn't seem to shock everyone. "Who is Nick Clegg?" was one of the top trending questions on Google overnight. 
 
 2. People turned out to vote 
 
 Turnout is the highest since 1997. It's up by 2% to 69%. 
 
 3. Jeremy Corbyn got young voters to turn out 
 
 Image copyright PA 
 
 It looks like Labour has been successful in persuading young voters to turn out and vote for the party. 
 
 There has been a greater swing to Labour in seats with a higher population of 18 to 24-year-olds, according to professor of politics John Curtice. 
 
 Turnout has also increased more in seats with young people - and Labour's vote seems to have advanced most in constituencies where the turnout increased most. 
 
 4. More female MPs than ever before 
 
 A record number of female MPs have been elected. There will be 208 women in this Parliament, outnumbering the 196 women elected in 2015. 
 
 About 30% of candidates were women this year - up from the previous record of 26% in 2015. However the actual number of women standing was down from 1,036 to 983. 
 
 Record number of female MPs 
 
 5. Ruth Davidson is the biggest Tory winner 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images 
 
 Mrs May may have had a terrible night, but the Scottish Conservative leader has arguably achieved one of the biggest success stories of recent UK political history. 
 
 The Scottish Tories were wiped out by the Tony Blair landslide in 1997 and narrowly escaped oblivion again in 2015 when the SNP swept to power in 56 of Scotland's 59 constituencies. The party's single MP hung on by only a few hundred votes. 
 
 Now they're back. The Conservatives won 13 seats in Scotland - the party's best performance in Scotland since 1983. The SNP are currently on 34 seats. 
 
 6. Sunderland lost its podium position 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images 
 
 Sunderland has historically been the first place to count and declare its results. But this year it lost out to Newcastle in the battle to be first, trumping its neighbour. 
 
 Newcastle Central was declared first at 23:01 BST, followed by Houghton and Sunderland South nine minutes later. Sunderland has been the fastest to declare for the past six elections. 
 
 7. The first female Sikh MP was elected 
 
 Image copyright PA 
 
 New Labour MP Preet Kaur Gill retained the party's seat of Birmingham Edgbaston, becoming the UK's first female Sikh MP. The 44-year-old, who got a majority of 6,917, said her passion for politics was inspired by her late father and his close friend Lord King, who became the first Sikh peer in the UK. 
 
 The seat of Birmingham Edgbaston has been continuously represented by women from both main parties since 1953. 
 
 Preet Gill elected as first female Sikh MP 
 
 8. It may have been the Brexit election after all 
 
 Labour has done well in seats that voted to Remain in the EU. The Tories have seen an uptick in seats that voted strongly to Leave, but far less than Labour's gain. 
 
 The swing to Labour in seats where Remain won over 55% in 2016 is averaging seven points, whereas there is a 1% swing to the Conservatives in seats where over 60% voted for Leave, according to Mr Curtice. 
 
 9. Jeremy Corbyn performed the most awkward high-five ever 
 
 Image copyright Reuters 
 
 The Labour leader might have had a belter of a night, but he needs to work on his high-fives. Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry appeared to get a slap across the chest when he overreached. 
 
 10. Theresa May stood against a person called Lord Buckethead 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images 
 
 Mrs May had an unusual opponent in her constituency of Maidenhead Lord Buckethead, who won 249 votes. It's not the first time he's tried to be an MP. In 1987, Lord Buckethead stood against Margaret Thatcher in Finchley, winning 131 votes. And in 1992, he stood against then prime minister John Major. 
 
 Image copyright PA 
 
 Lord Buckethead wasn't the only odd person the PM shared a stage with. Bobby "Elmo" Smith, pictured above, got three votes. 
 
 11. Tim Farron went up against Mr Fishfinger 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images 
 
 Lib Dem leader Tim Farron also had an unusual opponent in his Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency, Mr Fishfinger. 
 
 Mr Fishfinger raised enough money to cover his £500 deposit through a crowdfunding page. He managed to win 309 votes. 
 
 12. The smallest majority was just two votes 
 
 The battle for Richmond Park - between the Conservative's Zac Goldsmith and Lib Dem's Sarah Olney - came down to 45 votes after two recounts, with the Conservatives winning with a majority of 45. 
 
 But there was an even closer race in Scotland. The SNP held onto the Fife North East seat by just two votes - 0.005% of the vote - following three recounts. 
 
 13. Nigel Farage might make a political comeback 
 
 Mr Farage resigned as UKIP party leader last July, but said he would have "no choice" but to return to frontline politics if Brexit was under threat. 
 
 It wouldn't be the first time the former UKIP leader has done a U-turn. He resigned after failing to win a seat in 2015, but later decided he "owed it to the party to stay" on as leader. 
 
 14. There's a surge of interest in the DUP 
 
 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Arlene Foster's DUP made big gains, winning 10 seats 
 
 The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) built its 2015 general election campaign around the idea that its MPs might be kingmakers at Westminster. 
 
 But that's the position the 10 newly returned DUP MPs are now in given the hung parliament. 
 
 Senior DUP figures have made clear their antipathy towards Jeremy Corbyn because of his historic links with Sinn Féin but Theresa May - or whoever succeeds her - could be a plausible partner, as both parties are pro-Brexit and right of centre on many issues. It's too early to say whether they might consider a formal coalition or a more informal "confidence and supply" arrangement, according to sources. 
 
 Image copyright Google trends 
 
 The DUP website crashed on Friday morning after a surge of interest. DUP was also one of the most searched terms on Google. 
 
 Could DUP be Westminster kingmakers? 
 
 15. John Curtice became a social media star 
 
 Image copyright @estwebber 
 
 Mr Curtice's polling wisdom has attracted a bit of a cult following for years, but his social media fame reached a peak on election night. 
 
 A Twitter page called, "Is John Curtice on TV", designed to monitor and celebrate Curtice's TV appearances, was started in April and has more than 8,000 followers. 
 
 The cult of Curtice 
 
 16. Two-party politics is back 
 
 British politics has returned to a two-party system on the greatest scale since the 1970s. 
 
 In 2015, UKIP achieved 12.6% of the popular vote, while the SNP won 56 of the 59 seats it contested. This year the vote share was Conservative 42%, Labour 40%, Lib Dem 7%, UKIP 2% and the Greens 2%. 
 
 The SNP remain the largest party in Scotland but the Conservatives have won 12 seats off them so far, Labour has won seven and the Lib Dems three. 
 
 17. Kensington goes red 
 
 The count in the extremely wealthy central London constituency of Kensington was suspended following a request for a third recount, because staff were too tired. The seat, which has been strongly Tory since its inception, finally went to Labour for the first time in its history. 
 
 18. Mansfield had its own 'Oscars moment' 
 
 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Mansfield has its Oscars moment 
 
 Mansfield, in Nottinghamshire, had its own version of the Oscars' "Envelopegate" - after the returning officer announced the wrong winning candidate. 
 
 The Conservatives took Mansfield for the first time, overturning 94 years of Labour rule. 
 
 19. The pound plummeted 
 
 On Friday morning, it was down more than 2% against the dollar at $1.26800 - its biggest single day drop of the year. 
 
 It was almost 2% lower against the euro at 1.13300 euros. 
 
 Pound falls sharply but UK shares rise 
 
 20. The biggest swing of the night 
 
 The biggest swing - 20.4% - was in Alex Salmond's constituency of Gordon, which went from SNP to Conservative.
– She gambled on an early election—and she lost, big time. Theresa May and the Conservative Party have been dealt a huge blow in Britain's election, with the party losing its majority in Parliament after early predictions that it would gain as many as 80 seats. Full results have yet to arrive, but a hung parliament, in which no party has a majority, is now inevitable, reports the BBC. The Conservatives still have the most seats but Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party was the night's big winner, gaining more than 30 seats in Parliament, while the pro-Brexit United Kingdom Independence Party saw its share of the vote collapse. In Scotland, the Scottish National Party saw a fall in support, with former party leader Alex Salmond among those losing their seats. The latest: With Corbyn—and plenty of angry Conservatives—calling for her resignation, May signaled that she will stay on for now, Reuters reports. "At this time, more than anything else this country needs a period of stability," she said early Friday after she was re-elected to her own seat in Parliament. The inconclusive election was result was seen as a disaster by negotiators in Brussels, where Brexit talks are due to begin within days, the Guardian reports. May, who wasn't required to hold an election until 2020, said her reason for calling one early was to secure a greater mandate for the talks. "Could be messy for the United Kingdom in the years ahead," tweeted former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt. "One mess risks following another. Price to be paid for lack of true leadership." Senior Conservative officials tell the Telegraph that May made "fundamental strategic errors" during the campaign. "This is bad, it's worse than bad. Her advisers should walk out of the door now never to return, regardless of the final result," one senior official says. Numerous senior Conservative MPs have lost their seats, including manifesto author Ben Gummer. The BBC looks at what is likely to happen now that a hung parliament has been confirmed. Unless she chooses to resign, May is expected to remain as prime minister while she attempts to form a coalition government with smaller parties. ITV looks at election night's biggest losers, including Nick Clegg. The former Liberal Democrat, deputy prime minister in the coalition government until the 2015 election, lost his seat to Labour challenger Jared O'Mara.