Snap General Election Begins in the United Kingdom

Today, polling stations open in the UK for the general election, where millions of voters will elect their local MPs and, for the first time since December 2019, decide on the new composition of the House of Commons and which political party will form the new government, The Guardian reports.

Polling stations in 650 constituencies across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland opened at 7 a.m. local time on Thursday morning in the first general election in the UK since the country's official exit from the European Union.

Voting will continue until 22:00 local time, when the first estimate of results based on exit polls will be published.

The results will be counted overnight, and most local constituencies are expected to announce their winning candidates in the early hours of Friday morning.

If the party wins in 326 constituencies - just over half the number of seats in the House of Commons - it will have a majority.

Voting in 650 constituencies across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland begins at 7am local time and will last until 10pm. The exit poll is due to be released at 10pm and detailed election results are expected early on Friday, 5 July.

People vote for who they want to represent their constituency in the House of Commons. Candidates run on a list of their own or usually represent political parties.

The United Kingdom uses an electoral system called first past the post, which means that the single candidate who wins the majority of votes in their constituency becomes an MP. This also means that parties can win a large percentage of the national vote but still not win any seats if they do not finish first anywhere.