Last week the United Kingdom’s Conservative prime minister, Rishi Sunak, made a general election call whose timing surprised much of his own parliamentary caucus. The last British election was held in December of 2019, and its principal contenders were Conservative leader Boris Johnson and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, figures who somehow now seem as distant as antiquity. The Tories have changed leaders twice since ejecting Johnson in late 2022, but Sunak has been unable to make a dent in the 20-point polling advantage since enjoyed by Labour, which is now led by Sir Keir Starmer.