The top line: UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called a general election for 4 July, saying the electorate will be able to choose their future in a vote his Conservatives are widely expected to lose to the opposing Labour Party after 14 years in power.
The bigger picture: Sunak heads into the election not only far behind the Labour Party in the polls (about 20 percentage points) but also somewhat isolated from some in his party, increasingly dependent on a small team of advisers to steer him through the campaign.
Rishi Sunak's Conservative party are behind Labour in opinion polls.
What else to know: Labour has accused the government of 14 years of economic mismanagement, leaving people worse off.
What happens next: If Labour wins the election, the UK, once known for its political stability, will have had six prime ministers in eight years for the first time since the 1830s.
