The Labour Party is back in power in the UK after 14 years

• The Labour Party has triumphed in the UK general election.
• Prime Minister Rishi Sunak conceded defeat to the Labour Party chief, Keir Starmer.

The Tories are out, and the Labour Party is back in power in the UK.

Keir Starmer officially became Britain's new prime minister on Friday after a meeting with King Charles at Buckingham Palace.

It came hours after Rishi Sunak, the Conservative Party leader, conceded defeat in Thursday's general election.

"The Labour Party has won this general election, and I have called Keir Starmer to congratulate him on his victory," Sunak told reporters early Friday morning in the UK.

"The British people have delivered a sobering verdict tonight," he added. "There is much to learn and reflect on, and I take responsibility for the loss."

Starmer's party obtained a landslide victory against Sunak's, winning at least 412 seats as of press time, per Bloomberg. A party needs to obtain only 326 out of the 650 seats to form a simple majority.

The watershed election marks the Labour Party's stunning return to power, as it has been out of government since 2010.

"A mandate like this comes with a great responsibility," Starmer said in his victory speech. "The fight for trust is the battle that defines our age."

Starmer also said in his victory speech that his party planned to govern as a "changed Labour Party."

"I don't promise you it will be easy," he said. "Changing a country's not like flicking a switch. It's hard work. Patient work. Determined work. And we will have to get moving immediately."

The rise of Reform UK split the rightwing vote, helping Labour to victory. On Truth Social, Former US President Donald Trump congratulated Reform leader Nigel Farage for his "big WIN."

Starmer spent more than a decade rebuilding Labour and sought advice from Obama

Labour's landslide victory bucks the trend of far-right parties sweeping Europe.

Starmer, a former lawyer, joined Labour in 2015 and became the party's leader in 2020.

He spent more than a decade reshaping the party and seeking guidance from world leaders on how to bring it back to power.

One person who had a strong influence on Starmer was Barack Obama, who served as US president from 2009 until 2017. The Guardian reported in 2021 that the pair were involved in two hours' worth of private talks where they discussed how to bring center-left parties back to power.

Speaking on the "Power Play" podcast in September, Starmer said he speaks to Obama frequently and sometimes seeks his political advice.

"It is always useful to test my ideas on people who won elections, people who've taken difficult decisions in power because that helps me think about how we might approach some of the decisions we might have to take if we do win that election," he said.

Starmer also sought Obama's advice during the election campaign. Labour's David Lammy — who is said to have first introduced Obama and Starmer — told Politico's "Power Play" podcast that Obama encouraged Starmer to be more authentic and open up about his family and personal life.

"In terms of his leadership style, it's had an impact," political journalist Kitty Donaldson told Business Insider.

"Obama is quite laid back. This campaign has been more laid back than we have seen, and he seemed to enjoy going up and down the country speaking to people."