Mock progressive alliances all you like, but they’ve never been more essential
The uniting of the opposition in 2023 was a moment of optimism built out of despair. Labour, the Lib Dems, Greens and Welsh Nationalists resolved to do whatever it took to drive Boris Johnson from power. Under the slogan “just get rid of them”, they overcame an electoral system that had delivered a majority of 80 to the Conservatives on 43% of the vote in 2019 and could do so again.
In Turkey, Hungary and Israel, opposition parties had shown that protecting democracy from strongman leaders was more important than ideological divisions. The UK centre-left did not want its country to become a one-party state either and decided to put just one opposition candidate against the Tories in each seat.
