LONDON — The Scottish National Party was on course to win all but one of Scotland’s 59 districts in parliamentary elections Thursday, an exit poll showed.
The SNP, which lost last year’s referendum on Scottish independence, capitalized on a surge in support and membership, according to exit polls. The party, led by Nicola Sturgeon, currently has six seats in the House of Commons and its best previous result was 11 in 1974.
“I’d treat the exit poll with huge caution,” said Sturgeon on Twitter. “I’m hoping for a good night but I think 58 seats is unlikely.”
The SNP’s surge in the wake of its September defeat has been the biggest surprise of this spring’s British election, a development that has rocked the Labour Party and, if the exit polls prove close to accurate, would wipe out Labour in what has been a traditional stronghold and frustrate its hopes of forming a new minority government.
