Keir Starmer announces his resignation as prime minister

tomaytotomato wrote: post #3

Keir along with Theresa May and John Major were true bureaucrats but they all had no real charisma. Sadly charisma is valued more by voters than other qualities of the political leader of a country.

Major was actually great in front of a crowd (or in a crowd, standing on his soap box!), and thrived when faced with hecklers. Starmer, by contrast, is good in small groups and one-on-one - he really shone in podcasts and "chatty" interviews.

Both are pretty charismatic in their preferred settings. Neither is a "complete package", but that's common in British politics, and you can certainly see why they won their party's leadership and led them to general election victories.

May, by contrast, really did lack charisma. A decent, principled administrator but far from being a people person. She became party leader in the chaotic period immediately after Brexit, winning by default after her rivals imploded. I don't think she'd have come first (or even second) in a properly-contested vote.

Re: Keir Starmer announces his resignation as prime minister

#8

Post by j5dgx76 » Mon, Jun 22, 2026, 9:35 AM UTC

Maybe Moises Naim's End of Power thesis was right. More complex things get Power becomes easier to acquire, harder to use, easier to loose.

Re: Keir Starmer announces his resignation as prime minister

#9

Post by mamonster » Mon, Jun 22, 2026, 9:41 AM UTC

tomaytotomato wrote: post #3

Keir along with Theresa May and John Major were true bureaucrats but they all had no real charisma. Sadly charisma is valued more by voters than other qualities of the political leader of a country.

>Sadly charisma is valued more by voters than other qualities of the political leader of a country.

Isn't this basically an internal coup? That said I fail to see the point of him being replaced, the next person won't do any better.

Re: Keir Starmer announces his resignation as prime minister

#10

Post by ben_w » Mon, Jun 22, 2026, 10:31 AM UTC

mamonster wrote: post #9

tomaytotomato wrote: post #3

Keir along with Theresa May and John Major were true bureaucrats but they all had no real charisma. Sadly charisma is valued more by voters than other qualities of the political leader of a country.

>Sadly charisma is valued more by voters than other qualities of the political leader of a country. Isn't this basically an internal coup? That said I fail to see the point of him being replaced, the next person won't do any better.

> Isn't this basically an internal coup?

Kinda, but the coup was because Starmer is polling badly, and in the local elections he performed badly.

> That said I fail to see the point of him being replaced, the next person won't do any better.

It would be difficult to do worse, but not impossible. (I bet a Labour version of Truss exists, whoever they are I hope they don't win).