Should a snap election be called? – YOU VOTED

The Conservative Party should not call an early general election, a recent poll of Express.co.uk readers has found. Rishi Sunak won the Tory leadership contest on Monday by default and became the third Prime Minister in three months.Since Penny Mordaunt withdrew from the race Mr Sunak became Prime Minister without the mandate of Conservative Party members or the general public. As a result, many political figures have called for a snap election.Leader of Reform UK, Richard Tice, said: ‘We have a prime minister appointed by acclamation. His party members rejected him. Democracy is in peril.’Ian Blackford, the SNP’s Westminster leader, told BBC’s Good Morning Scotland’ ‘The last thing the country needs is another unelected Tory in Downing Street. If Tory MPs have any respect for democracy, they’ll put pressure on the new prime minister to immediately call a general election.’Meanwhile, Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner accused Mr Sunak of ‘dodging scrutiny’ and said in a statement: ‘The Tories have crowned Rishi Sunak as prime minister without him saying a single word about how he would run the country, and without anyone having the chance to vote.’Leader of the Liberal Democrats Sir Ed Davey shared this view, saying: ‘The Conservatives have trashed our economy, pushed health services to the brink, and added hundreds of pounds to people’s mortgage payments. Now Conservative MPs have installed another out-of-touch prime minister without giving you a say. We need a general election now.’READ MORE: Polling guru Curtice warns climate ‘couldn’t be worse’ for new PM Express.co.uk readers do not want an early general election (Image: Getty)In a poll that ran from 11am on Friday, October 21, to 4pm on Monday, October 24, Express.co.uk asked readers: ‘Should there be a general election?’Overall, 2,564 people responded with the vast majority of readers, 64 percent (1,627 people) answering ‘no’ there should not be a general election.A further 36 percent (921 people) said ‘yes’ there should, while just 16 people said they did not know.Hundreds of readers shared their thoughts in the comments section below the accompanying article.Many readers argued against a general election being called, with username Lesi writing: ‘No, we have no policies from the opposition parties and we need them now not when an election is called. Be very careful what you wish for.’Username NWO3 said: ‘No. What’s the point of another general election when the country and the world are going through difficult times? What’s the point of having the fourth election in six years when MPs from all the political parties consistently fail to respect the results?’And username vikkristian said: ‘The country is in a hole, we do not need another election. It is time for all parties to stop acting like children and pull together and get us out of it.’Meanwhile, some readers commented that the Conservatives still had two years until the end of their term and should be allowed to continue to govern until January 2025.DON’T MISS:Labour MP forced to admit that Sunak’s cabinet is full of ‘talent’ [LATEST]Starmer fails to condemn Labour MP for vile attack on Rishi’s race [UPDATE]How Michael Gove fought off his enemies and bounced back [ANALYSIS] Rishi Sunak does not have a mandate of Conservative Party members or the public (Image: Getty)Andrew Bowie, Tory MP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine, said that the UK needed ‘stability’ and dismissed calls for an election as not ‘in the national interest’.He told BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland: ‘A General Election, even for a snap General Election, by law necessitates six weeks of campaigning. That is six weeks when parliament isn’t sitting and six weeks where Government isn’t getting down to business.’He added: ‘We need a period of stability and certainty. And that means getting back down to sober, serious government in the national interest, and that would be the least well-served by going to the country right now in a snap General Election.’However, other readers argued that a general election should be called to give the Prime Minister a mandate. Username leafspot said: ‘Yes. Let’s have a Prime Minister that the people vote for.’ The Conservatives still has two years left of until the end of term (Image: EXPRESS.CO.UK)Username Ma baker said: ‘General election now, we can’t go on like this it’s not fair to the people.’And username Krzysz wrote: ‘From a democratic perspective, obviously there should be a general election.’In his first speech, behind closed doors, to MPs as Prime Minister to MPs on Monday afternoon, Mr Sunak is said to have ruled out an early general election.He reportedly acknowledged the Conservative Party were trailing Labour in the polls and urged his Party to ‘unite or die’.