Putting off the inevitable? UK lawmakers reject BoJo’s snap election proposal

UK MPs have voted down PM Boris Johnson’s motion for an early general election on December 12, but it could just be a matter of days before an alternative date and conditions are agreed by parliament.

While 299 lawmakers supported the motion, the number fell short of the 434 votes – a two-thirds majority – that Johnson had hoped for.

Responding to the latest parliament defeat, the PM said he will soon present a new bill to hold an election on December 12, "so we can finally get Brexit done."

The short-form version of the bill Johnson plans to introduce requires only a simple majority and sets aside the provisions of the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act, making it more likely to pass.

Announcing that Labour Party will vote against Johnson's motion on Monday, its leader Jeremy Corbyn called him "a Prime Minister that cannot be trusted," even rubbing it in with the infamous "dead in a ditch" quote.

Meanwhile, Johnson said that "this House cannot any longer keep this country hostage," adding that it's time for the voters to step in and "replace this dysfunctional parliament with a new parliament that can get Brexit done so the country can move on."

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