Analysis examines the impact of the Brexit referendum on political leadership and governance in the UK post-2026.
22 June 2026 marked the start of a new chapter for the post-Brexit story of the United Kingdom (UK): On that day, Prime Minister Keir Starmer (Labour Party) announced his resignation after less than two years in office. The immediate reasons for Starmer’s premature end are the disappointing results for the Labour party in the regional elections in May 2026, his personal unpopularity and his bad party management (Crerar 22.06.2026). On closer inspection, there are some crucial underlying reasons—and these seem to be closely related to the Brexit referendum on 23 June 2016 and its consequences: “The actual tragedy of Keir Starmer is the Brexit. […] Brexit has made Great Britain ungovernable”, argues for example Anthony Glees (Norddeutscher Rundfunk 2026 ). And the Guardian journalist Rafael Behr states that Starmer “couldn’t beat the curse of Brexit” (Behr 24.06.2026).
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Karsten Schäfer (2026) studied this question.
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