UK’s Conservatives say the party’s biggest donor made racist comments, but they will keep his money

LONDON — A minister in Britain’s Conservative government said Wednesday that the party does not plan to give back 10 million pounds ($12.8 million) it received in the past year from a donor who made comments about a Black lawmaker that have been condemned as racist. The government is under pressure from some of its … Read more

UK’s Sunak criticizes a Conservative’s attack on London mayor and denies Islamophobia accusations

LONDON — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Monday that a Conservative lawmaker was wrong to say the mayor of London is controlled by Islamists, and denied his party tolerates anti-Muslim prejudice. Sunak was pressured to condemn Islamophobia after the comments by Lee Anderson about Mayor Sadiq Khan, amid growing tensions within British politics … Read more

UK Conservatives Suspend Lee Anderson Over “Islamist” Remark

LONDON — The U.K.’s governing Conservative Party has suspended ties with one if its lawmakers after he accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of being controlled by Islamists, as tensions over the Israel-Hamas war roil British politics. The party said on Saturday that Lee Anderson was suspended after he refused to apologize for remarks made about … Read more

While eyes are on Trump, Supreme Court conservatives prepare to rewrite the rulebook

Contentious Supreme Court oral arguments this week offered a reminder that while the public focuses on the Donald Trump election cases, the court’s actions this spring will be equally consequential for an array of rules set in Washington governing American life. Supreme Court conservatives are accelerating their moves to overhaul the way the federal government … Read more

Supreme Court Justices Roberts and Coney Barrett split with conservatives to give Biden a border win

Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images The Supreme Court cleared the way for federal agents to cut through barbed wire that Texas put up along the southern border. Justices John Roberts and Amy Coney Barrett sided with the court’s 3 liberals in the 5-4 decision. It’s a huge win for the Biden administration in its border fight with … Read more

Iowa’s Christian conservatives follow their faith when voting, and some say it leads them to Trump

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Pastor Charles Hundley opened his worship service on a cold Sunday in northeast Des Moines with a prayer that made it clear one endorsement above all will matter in Iowa’s caucuses eight days away. “We thank you for the upcoming election, Lord — or caucus, as we call it in … Read more

Former energy minister quits Britain’s Conservatives over approval of new oil drilling

LONDON — Britain’s former energy minister said Friday he is quitting the Conservative Party and stepping down as a lawmaker over the government’s backtracking on its environmental commitments. Chris Skidmore said he could not support a forthcoming bill that will authorize new North Sea oil and gas drilling and called the U.K.’s retreat from its … Read more

Lawmaker’s suspension means a possible special election and more trouble for U.K. Conservatives

LONDON — A political standards watchdog in Britain said Thursday that a Conservative lawmaker who offered to lobby the government on behalf of gambling interests should be suspended from Parliament for 35 days. The Commons Standards Committee said Scott Benton had “communicated a toxic message about standards in Parliament” during a meeting earlier this year … Read more

Greece’s ruling conservatives suffer setbacks in regional, municipal elections

ATHENS, Greece — Greece’s ruling New Democracy party suffered a setback in Sunday’s runoff elections for regional governors and mayors, losing the country’s two largest cities and five of the six regional contests. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had explicitly said that his goal was to win all 13 regions plus the cities of Athens, Thessaloniki … Read more

Germany’s conservatives set to win state elections with far-right making gains

Skyscrapers of the city center can be seen from the Lohrberg in the north of Frankfurt. Photo: Arne Dedert/dpa (Photo by Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images) Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images Germany’s conservative opposition was slated to win two state elections while the far-right gained ground on Sunday, exit polls showed, … Read more