Jeremy Corbyn was 2,227 votes away from becoming British PM

An analysis of marginal seats has revealed that Jeremy Corbyn could not become the British prime minister for only 2,227 votes. Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour Party, would have had the opportunity to form a “progressive alliance” with all other smaller parties including the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) only if he won seven seats narrowly taken by the Conservatives, reports the Independent. The Labour Party has said it was set to form an alliance government, with Corbyn announcing: “We are ready to serve.” Corbyn was only 2,227 votes away from being able to form a coalition government, similarly May’s Conservatives were only 287 votes from being able to form a working majority. Corbyn could have entered 10 Downing Street by blocking May if he won seven more seats, which would have held 321 seats of a coalition of Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party (SNP), Plaid Cymru, the Green Party and one independent MP in the House of Commons. Sinn Fein, which won seven seats, does not attend Westminster. The Speaker of the House, Conservative John Bercow, also does not vote. Although the Liberal Democrats had ruled out joining with other parties during the election campaign, The Green Party, SNP and Plaid Cymru had all spoken in favour of alliances. There are 650 constituencies across the country and the seven constituencies won by the Conservatives over Labour with the slimmest majorities were Southampton Itchen (majority 31); Preseli Pembrokeshire (majority 314); Hastings and Rye (majority 346); Chipping Barnet (majority 353); Thurrock (345 majority); Norwich North (majority 507); and Pudsey (majority 331). May would have been able to form a government without support from the Democratic Unionist Party, which won 10 seats if Conservatives seized four seats from Labour – Dudley North (22 majority); Newcastle-under-Lyme (30 majority); Crew and Nantwich (48 majority); and Canterbury (187 majority). The calculation comes as the Tories were reeling from the loss of their majority, which it had looked as though they would substantially increase when May called the election in April. The DUP, which increased its number of seats to 10, said it was working on a deal with the Tories whereby it would support them on a vote-by-vote basis.