Jubilant Labour gloated that an 'electoral meteor' has hit today after Keir Starmer was projected to get a huge majority.<br /><br />Moments after ballot stations closed at 10 pm, the dramatic exit poll was released - showing Sir Keir winning 410 of the 650 seats. That would be a majority of 170 - just short of the 179 achieved by Tony Blair.<br /><br />The Tories are expected to be slashed from the 365 secured less than five years ago to just 131 - their worst performance in modern political history. A host of big beasts, from Jeremy Hunt to Grant Shapps and Penny Mordaunt could fall victim to the purge. <br /><br />In the first tangible evidence of the hammering, Labour's Heidi Alexander took ex-Cabinet minister Robert Buckland's Swindon South seat with a 9,000 majority. <br /><br />Meanwhile, the Lib Dems could get 61 MPs - and Nigel Farage's Reform insurgents are predicted to have 13 after effectively leeching millions of votes from the Conservatives. <br /><br />That could include Mr Farage taking Clacton, while Conservative sources in Great Yarmouth confirmed they expected Reform to triumph there.<br /><br />The SNP would be slashed to 10, meaning they would no longer be the biggest party in Scotland. <br /><br />Although the exit survey, run for broadcasters by polling guru Sir John Curtice, is not guaranteed to be exact, it has accurately reflected the outcome in the past few elections.<br /><br />Sir Keir gave a muted reaction to the bombshell, posting on social media: 'To everyone who has campaigned for Labour in this election, to everyone who voted for us and put their trust in our changed Labour Party - thank you.' <br /><br />But his allies were far less restrained, with Lord Mandelson boasting that he was 'gobsmacked' and an 'electoral meteor' had 'struck planet Earth'. He said it would have required a 'superman' to save the Tories and Rishi Sunak 'is not Superman'.<br /><br />Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner - who could be set to become deputy PM within hours - said the numbers were 'encouraging' and praised Sir Keir's leadership. <br /><br />Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting was in tears as he was told the figures on live TV. <br /><br />Tories immediately descended into bitter recriminations, with demands for Rishi Sunak to quit.<br /><br />A former Cabinet minister - who regards their significant majority as under threat - said Mr. Sunak had 'knifed' Boris Johnson and would be remembered as the 'worst PM ever'. <br /><br />But Sir Robert gave a stark warning against the Tories lurching to the right, saying the party risked being like 'bald men fighting over a comb' if it treated politics as 'performance art' and tried to outflank Reform. <br />
