Boris Johnson’s colossal victory in the General Election was splashed over front pages across the world today, with one French newspaper now opting for an unusual mock-up of him as the Queen for its coverage.
Liberation, a daily newspaper in France, has edited the Prime Minister’s face on to an image of the Queen for its weekend coverage of the latest development in the Brexit saga.
It writes that with the Conservatives broad victory in the general election, the British have now entrusted a clear mandate to Boris Johnson to finalize the divorce from the European Union.
German tabloid Bild went with ‘Landslide victory for Brexit Boris!’, while Italy’s La Repubblica summed up its reports with, ‘Europa bye-bye,’ and referenced the Tories’ biggest win since Margaret Thatcher in 1987.
Others spoke of ‘Hurricane Boris,’ the Brexit ‘earthquake’ and a Tory ‘avalanche.’
Like the British press, the European papers were largely relying on the exit polls, but it became clear early on Thursday night that Mr Johnson was to deliver a thumping victory.
The Conservatives have so far taken 364 seats, a gain of 47, while Labour sits on 203, a loss of 59. There is just one more seat left to declare its result.
Liberation, a daily newspaper in France, has edited the Prime Minister’s face on to an image of the Queen for its weekend coverage of the latest development in the Brexit saga. It writes that with the Conservatives broad victory in the general election, the British have now entrusted a clear mandate to Boris Johnson to finalize the divorce from the European Union
German tabloid Bild went with: ‘Landslide victory for Brexit Boris!’ and ‘Jeremy Corbyn announces his withdrawal.’ In its main story on Brexit, the paper spoke of the Tories’ biggest triumph since Margaret Thatcher in 1987 and the powerful mandate the Prime Minister now had to ‘get Brexit done.’
Bild later changed its website’s banner to reflect Mr Johnson’s pun on Brexit and Breakfast, quoting him in English. In the article it explained Mr Johnson’s pun about having breakfast first, the German word for breakfast, ‘frühstück’, does not chime with Brexit as it does in English. Above the headline it says: ‘Landslide victory ++ Johnson announces ‘timely’ withdrawal from the the EU’
America’s financial paper The Wall Street Journal wrote: ‘Conservative Victory Sets stage for January Brexit.’ It spoke of a ‘stunning victory for the Brexit cheerleader’ Boris Johnson who will now be able to forge ahead with his Brexit plans unshackled. They described the win as a ‘once-in-a-generation realignment’ of the British political landscape after Jeremy Corbyn presided over Labour’s worst result since the 1935 election
Italy’s second biggest newspaper La Repubblica ran the headline, ‘Europa bye-bye’, and below it a story (top left) titled, ‘The final game of Brussels.’ And at the top of its page, ‘London has chosen’, was the tagline. The newspaper’s website made mention of President Donald Trump’s congratulations for the British Prime Minister high up in its report. It also spoke of the worst defeat for Labour since 1935
The Washington Post dedicated a large pane of its front page to Boris Johnson’s thumping win, despite the rumbling impeachment saga in the States. ‘British polls point to sweeping Tory triumph,’ was the headline for the East Coast paper. It recognised the achievement of Mr Johnson last seen in Thatcher’s day and the failure of Jeremy Corbyn, who the paper referred to as the ‘hard-left leader’
Copenhagen’s daily newspaper B.T. wrote: ‘Worst result in 84 years,’ a reference to Labour’s dismal showing in the general election. The paper said: ‘Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party have won a major victory in the British election – even before all the votes have been counted. That means Boris Johnson is mandated to implement his Brexit plans by the end of January.’
French weekly financial paper La Tribune headlined their UK election story: ‘The British hanging on a historic vote.’ The French paper, having gone to press before the result was clear, speculated last night: ‘Brexit with Boris Johnson or a second referendum with Jeremy Corbyn? The British vote this Thursday, is fateful for the future of the country in the coming decades … the British will choose between the Brexit of Prime Minister Boris Johnson or a new referendum on the withdrawal from the EU promised by Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn’
Portuguese daily newspaper published in Lisbon, Diario de Noticias, wrote: ‘Elections in the UK give Boris victory to deal with Brexit.’ It wrote about the historic decision by Britain to vote ahead of the Christmas holidays, the first time since 1923, and how the election looked set to break the ‘paralisia’ (paralysis) that had gripped the House of Commons since the Brexit vote in 2016
The Spanish daily newspaper based in Madrid wrote: ‘Polls point to a firm majority for Johnson.’ El Pais hailed Boris Johnson’s thumping win which had far exceed the Tory party’s expectations, despite strong polling numbers in the weeks leading up to the vote. It referenced the breaking down of ‘muralla roja’ (the red wall) of the Labour party and quoted Mr Johnson in English: ‘Get Brexit Done’
Rome’s daily newspaper Il Messagero wrote: ‘Johnson avalanche, Brexit close.’ In the first line of its copy, the Italian paper wrote: ‘Unione Europea addio’ (Goodbye European Union). It described the huge power which the Prime Minister would be able to draw on from his majority and asserted that Brexit was now irreversible. It quoted the President of the European Council Charles Michel and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen who said they were ready to negotiate
The Los Angeles Times said: ‘Brexit backer’s headed for big victory: with Conservatives’ strong election results, UK is poised to leave the EU in January’. The US paper said that Boris Johnson’s ‘Get Brexit Done’ slogan had carried ‘blunt-force appeal’ among the British public after more than three years of ‘paralyzing infighting over when, whether or how’
Munich’s daily newspaper chose the well-used photograph of Boris Johnson and his dog outside the polling station on Thursday. The Bavarian paper spoke of Mr Johnson’s ‘free hand’ and the likelihood of Brexit now being delivered by January 31. The paper said: ‘In negotiating future relations with the EU, he must now try to get the best for his country. But that will not be easy.’
The Milanese daily newspaper Il Giornale wrote: ‘Hurricane Boris, Brexit triumphs.’ On its website the Italian paper said: ‘Another victory for the ‘bad guys”. It spoke of a ‘like or not’ resounding statement by the British electorate that Brexit must be delivered. In lyrical terms, the paper said: ‘The night flows frantically throughout Britain. And fear and enthusiasm compete in the spirits of politics and the people. Many predicted Johnson’s victory, but no one expected such a clear break with Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour. Bojo skill or Corbyn’s negligence?’
Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet went with: ‘Big win for the Tories: “Now Brexit’s clear”‘. The paper’s website described Mr Johnson’s hard work campaigning in the Labour heartlands of the North, saying: ‘Boris Johnson ended his election campaign as a “milkman” in the northern parts of the country which gave him great support in the election.’
Swedish daily Aftonbladet wrote: ‘Boris Johnson’s triumph created an earthquake’. The controversy surrounding Mr Johnson’s charismatic, but often divisive character was not lost on the paper. It wrote: ‘For Boris Johnson, the clear election victory is a personal success. He has often emerged as a bit of a buffoon, not least in the election campaign. But it is obvious that he has been on the same wavelength as a clear majority of voters.’
In its main piece the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung wrote: ‘Johnson triumphs – but at what price?’ The paper wrote: ‘The Tories are heading for the largest parliamentary majority since Margaret Thatcher’s triumph in the late 1980s. By contrast, Labour has hit its worst showing since the early 1980s. The Tories managed to conquer dozens of constituencies in the former working-class and Labour strongholds of northern England and Wales.’
German national newspaper Die Welt wrote a stinging rebuke of the Prime Minister, saying: ‘They all (the EU leaders) know Johnson, his loose handling of the truth as well as his boundless ambition and opportunism.’ It spoke of ‘alarm bells’ ringing in Berlin and Brussels and questioned whether the result meant the British people were ‘far to the right’
The Irish Times spoke of Boris Johnson’s triumph allowing him to leave the EU on his own terms and of the key battleground in North Belfast where Sinn Féin’s John Finucane beat the DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds. Dodds had held the seat since 2001
The largest Dutch newspaper, De Telegraaf, wrote: ‘Great win for Boris Johnson’. It described how Mr Johnson’s big win meant he could now deliver Brexit quickly and that the British public were resounding in their wish to leave the EU. The paper’s UK correspondent Joost van Mierlo wrote: ‘Voters have opted en masse for the Brexit clarity the Conservatives offered them. And they have strongly punished Labour’s confusing messaging on Brexit.’
Israeli paper The Jerusalem Post called it: ‘The UK’s most fateful election since WWII’. On its website, the newspaper wrote: ‘Corbyn’s loss marked a victory for British Jews as he is often criticized for his antisemitic views and actions, such as laying a wreath for the terrorists in the Munich massacre, calling Hamas and Hezbollah his “friends,” and writing a forward to a book which claims that Jews control the world’s economy.’
Spanish daily paper El Pais wrote on its website: ‘Boris Johnson achieves an overwhelming victory and already has free track for Brexit’. It spoke of Mr Johnson thanking the voters, especially the working-class former Labour voters who had given him their trust.
Spanish daily El Mundo wrote on its website: ‘United Kingdom. Boris Johnson achieves the absolute majority to complete Brexit.’ And in separate pieces below they questioned the Prime Minister, a charismatic but ‘unreliable’ figure
In its main piece French newspaper Le Monde said: ‘Johnson masterfully succeeds, Corbyn endures a debacle, the lessons of a historic vote in the UK’
Haaretz, Israel’s longest-running national paper, focused on Jeremy Corbyn’s failure in the election with the headline: ‘Corbyn Weakens Labour’s ‘Red Wall’ Across the North’. The paper said that while Brexit had been a central issue in the election, the personalities of the two leaders had ‘overshadowed’ their campaigns. Their reporter wrote that Corbyn had been ‘mired in anti-Semitic scandal since he won the leadership in 2015’
On its website La Repubblica went with: ‘Triumph for Boris Johnson’s Conservatives: “On January 31 we will be out of the EU without ifs and buts”. Labour collapses Brexit Results, possible vote for the Municipalities by Christmas’