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Bolivian Government Thwarts Attempted Coup D'etat; Kenyan President William Ruto Withdraws Controversial Finance Bill After Deadly Protests; President Joe Biden And Donald Trump Prepare To Face Off At CNN In Atlanta; Espionage Trial Of U.S. Reporter Evan Gershkovich Begins; CNN Investigation Reveals How Raid to Free Israeli Hostages Devastated Palestinian Family; Sunak and Starmer Face Off in Final Debate Before Election; Labour Party Soft in the Polls as the Tories Continue to Sink. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired June 27, 2024 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:29]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming on CNN Max. I'm Paula Newton in New York.

Just to head for us, an uneasy peace settles over La Paz after a failed coup attempt that saw armed forces take over the Bolivian capital's main square only to withdraw within a matter of hours.

After days of deadly protests, Kenya's president makes a U-turn on the controversial finance bill. But will the announcement actually calm the country simmering unrest?

And we're just hours away now, America's first presidential debate of 2024. We'll walk through what to expect when Joe Biden and Donald Trump take to the stage at CNN World headquarters in Atlanta.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta.

NEWTON: Bolivia's former army chief is under arrest after launching a coup attempt that failed spectacularly.

The military police he deployed into the center of La Paz on Wednesday wound up pulling back just hours -- hour later, after the newly appointed head of the army ordered them to leave.

Now, Juan Jose Zuniga had lost his job on Tuesday for reportedly threatening to block a presidential bid by former Bolivian President Evo Morales. Before his arrest, Zuniga claimed the people have no future and it's the army that's looking out for their wellbeing.

Now, earlier, armored vehicles were seen trying to break down the doors of the presidential palace. President Luis Arce called on Bolivians to organize and mobilize in defense of their democracy.

Crowds flooded into the main plaza in support of the government and to demonstrate against the attempted coup.

We want to bring in CNN's Julia Vargas Jones now live from Los Angeles for us, and you've been following all of the developments now.

Political turmoil, of course not new for Bolivia. But these events really did break new ground. What more are you learning about exactly how and why these events unfolded?

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, what's really striking to me is how quickly it all happened, and how much -- how many images we have, how much the cameras were given access. We saw this play, you know, scene by scene throughout the day.

Look, Bolivia military takes the square, we see those images of the tanks ramming into the doors of Palacio Quemado in La Paz capital of Bolivia.

And then, we have that incredible video of Luis Arce, the current president facing off against his former head of the military. I think, again, that is the defining image of today. He's basically saying you are not welcome here.

He also really relied on his supporters who came in unmask to see him and help him defend him by the palace. This is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LUIS ARCE, BOLIVIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): They wanted to surprise us and the Bolivian people, we responded. And the mobilization of the people also allowed us to defeat this coup attempt today. Thank you Bolivian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VARGAS JONES: And the attorney general is now vowing to impose the maximum punishment on the perpetrators of the coup but, Paula, this message that this will not stand is being echoed not only in Bolivia and in the region. We're seeing reaction from Spain, from the European Union all in condemnation of what happened today.

NEWTON: You know, what's so interesting here is how Evo Morales, you know, that looming figure on Bolivian politics, how he is very clearly involved in what went on today. Can you explain?

VARGAS JONES: Well, of course. Well, first of all, you mentioned that Zuniga had lost his job on Tuesday. That was after he made comments, saying that basically, the military would have to act if Evo Morales actually won the election that he said he planned to run for next year in the presidency.

Now, I don't know the background of this and how it actually came to be, Paula. We don't know the backstage action of this. But we do know that Evo Morales was a mentor to Luis Arce for many years. He actually handpicked Arce to run for the presidency. And they have had a bit of a rift in over the past year since Morales said that he wants to run for presidency again. It has come off as a bit of a challenge to the very predecessor that he had picked to be in power.

[02:05:12]

Meanwhile, Bolivia is going through a handful of I would say economic challenges both have reduced energy production, the inflation, devaluation of the local currency.

And Arce is saying the challenge by this towering figure that is Evo Morales as not really helping the situation. They've actually come to a political rift inside their own party. It's become a quite fraught relationship with accusations flying left and right in this kind of political, personal relationship playing out in a national stage, Paula.

NEWTON: Now, middle of the night right now in La Paz, and we will continue to keep an eye on developments there.

Julia Vargas Jones for us. Thanks so much, really appreciate it.

Now earlier, I spoke with Professor Eduardo Gamarra from Florida International University and asked if this failed coup attempt is a serious blow to Bolivian stability.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EDUARDO GAMARRA, POLITICS AND INTERNATIONAL PROFESSOR, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: The reality is that this was a -- this was something that occurred over a matter of hours from beginning to end.

There are reportedly nine people wounded. There are no other signs of violence. And this is a very sharp contrast to for example, what happened in 2019, when there were many, many people killed.

So, this is -- this was done in a very orderly fashion. And it's done by the way, a week after the Bolivians accused the U.S. of trying to orchestrate a coup. The Bolivian government, in fact called in the U.S. has charged the affairs accusing the U.S. of attempting to stage a coup in Bolivia.

So, all of these, you know, are the ingredients for this very, very interesting plot. That leads many reputable people to conclude that there was -- that this is mainly political theater in an attempt to strengthen a very weak president with very weak political institutions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Now, Professor Gamarra, in fact added that it could be at least a few days before we get a full explanation about what happened and why.

Now, protesters in Kenya meantime are set to take to the streets once again in the coming hours for a one Million People March. It comes after more than a week of deadly protests over a controversial finance bill, which made its way through parliament. Now, protesters torched government buildings and cars around Nairobi in response. In a surprising turn of events though on Wednesday, Kenyan President

William Ruto withdrew the bill after vowing to protect the country from violence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WILLIAM RUTO, KENYAN PRESIDENT: I run a government but I also lead people. And the people have spoken, listening keenly to the people of Kenya who have said loudly that they want nothing to do with this Finance Bill 2024. I concede.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Mr. Ruto says six people were killed in the protests. The Kenyan Civil Society Organization reports a much higher number, in fact, saying at least 23 people lost their lives in the clashes.

CNN's Victoria Rubadiri is following developments for us from Nairobi.

I see you on the streets there. That was quite a concession, obviously with the words I concede. Is it enough and what are you expecting in the next hours there from protesters?

VICTORIA RUBADIRI, CNN REPORTER: Well, Paula, from reactions from Kenyans on social media and just in general, that concession from the president yesterday was simply not enough. The protesters had vowed to come out into the streets today in what they're calling the one Million People March. They want to, of course, increase the number of people who will be out here.

This is probably the closest we've managed to get to what has been a police buffer zone created around a state house that they say of course there cordoning off that particular area that is the target for the protesters today as we're monitoring the situation.

Right now, it's relatively quiet, things should pick up a bit later on in the day, though.

NEWTON: You know, as you say, they've created this buffer zone. I mean, highly controversial, and obviously tragic. And some civil organizations in Kenya are saying, look, using live ammunition with these protesters is what escalated all of this. What more are we learning about why and how that happened?

RUBADIRI: Right, that's the issue that they are protesting today, those killings that Kenyan say was completely unwarranted.

[02:10:03]

You're hearing authorities playing blame game, if you will, saying that it is a failure on the part of the intelligence services here in the country, not giving adequate enough information to the president to preempt the anger to read the mood in the country that led to the protests that we've seen in the last a couple of days.

And so, Kenyans want to reiterate their anger, their frustration with a government that they consider still very tone deaf, not in their interests. And of course, they will continue to ramp up the pressure in hopes that something is done to have their voices heard today.

NEWTON: And again, all of this even though in fact, Ruto has withdrawn this new Finance Bill.

Victoria, we'll continue to check in with you in the coming hours. Appreciate it.

Now to America's choice 2024 in the first presidential debate of the selection between Joe Biden and Donald Trump and it's set to take place in the day ahead at CNN World headquarters in Atlanta.

There will not be a live audience and the candidates microphones will be muted when they're speaking time expires. The podiums are just eight feet apart. Now, that's closer than in previous Biden Trump debates.

CNN's Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will be asking the questions and moderating.

The latest CNN poll, the poll shows there was no clear leader in the presidential race and both candidates have struggled with negative approval ratings.

Now we're expecting close scrutiny of course of both men's age and mental fitness as they take the debate stage. President Biden a reminder is 81-year-old -- 81 years old, Donald Trump recently turned 78.

The economy, immigration and crime are among the most important issues for voters and those all played Trump's strengths. His advisors are urging him to be less aggressive than in the past debates, keep his focus, stay on message. Aids say President Biden will defend his economic record and highlight his support for democracy and abortion rights. One advisor says looking directly into the camera is a technique that tested off the charts with focus groups.

Now, Mr. Biden has spent the week preparing for the debate at Camp David, that presidential retreat in Maryland.

CNN's MJ Lee has a look at one specific line of attack he's expecting from Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MJ LEE, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: There is one separate category of incoming from Donald Trump that President Biden we are told is preparing for and that is potential personal insults and attacks aimed not just at the president, but members of his family, as well.

A Biden advisor tells me that in debate prep sessions at Camp David, the president and his team have been preparing for the president to respond to those kinds of potential attacks thrown his way by the former president. And while this advisor wouldn't elaborate, of course, still fresh for

President Biden is the news from earlier this month that his son, Hunter, was convicted on three felony gun charges.

This was a legal saga that was extremely painful for the entire Biden family. And of course, what's incredible is that the president has already experienced his son Hunter of being attacked by the former president on the debate stage. And that was back in 2020, when President Trump said that Hunter Biden had been dishonorably discharged from the military for cocaine use.

To be clear, he had been administratively discharged, which is different. He also mocked Hunter Biden for not getting a job, he said until his father had become vice president.

And the moment where President Biden defended Hunter Biden in response ended up being a moment that aide said afterwards really resonated with American voters, it was a moment where the president at the time was able to really connect with different American families who have had experience with family members dealing with addiction issues.

So, all of this just goes to show the level to which the Biden team has really been trying to prepare the president for anything and everything that the former president might throw his way on Thursday night.

MJ Lee, CNN, Atlanta, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now, earlier I spoke with Caroline Heldman, a political scientist at Occidental College and Lanhee Chen, he was Policy Director of Mitt Romney's campaign and is a fellow at Stanford's -- Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

I asked them both if the debate is a chance for those candidates to prove their mental fitness. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAROLINE HELDMAN, POLITICAL SCIENTIST, OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE: Biden has been framed as old and feeble, and he really needs to go dark Brandon in this debate. And Donald Trump has been framed as unhinged and he needs to be sticking to the issues, not be chaotic or mean in his responses.

So, I think there's some possibility of maybe reaching some undecided voters. Although who was undecided after having both men and office for the last eight years who could possibly be undecided at this point? I think without a major stumble or big faux pas, this probably won't really affect the outcome of the election.

[02:15:08]

NEWTON: I mean, what do you think because, you know, this is an opportunity, one could say, for the two of them to really put some of their, you know, reputations to rush (ph), shall we say, and really strike down some of the criticisms against them?

LANHEE CHEN, FORMER POLICY DIRECTOR OF MITT ROMNEY'S CAMPAIGN: I do think it's an opportunity, I think it's particularly an opportunity for Joe Biden, because of the nature of the race, obviously, given Donald Trump's positioning in the key swing states that will decide this election, the six key swing states where Donald Trump has, in some cases, a very narrow advantage, but an advantage nonetheless.

I think, for Joe Biden, he's got to look for opportunities to alter the nature of the race, to alter the trajectory of the race. And this debate presents an opportunity now how long that impact lasts, I think Caroline's point about public opinion.

You know, it's not clear that there will be a long lasting impact. But there will be an impact probably on the race, at least in the short to intermediate term. And Joe Biden is looking for every break he can get at this point, I think.

So, there is an opportunity for Biden, certainly. There is an opportunity as well for Trump. But I do think that from the perspective of who this debate matters more to, I think the answer pretty clearly is President Biden and the Biden team.

NEWTON: Interesting. And Caroline, in light of that, we have no audience, the muted mics, do you think this could help distill the message for President Biden and conversely for Trump, maybe help him stay on track, look like the disciplined leader who can connect with voters?

HELDMAN: Well, Biden will certainly be able to get a word in edgewise, right? Not what we saw in 2020, with his debate with Trump, but I do agree with the analysis that's out there right now that this benefits Trump tremendously, because he needs to stay on message, he needs to stay on the policy message, and not get pulled off by, you know, following the audience and meandering, which sometimes he is known to do.

And you know, Lanhee brings up a really good point about how much more this will matter for Biden, if it matters at all, it's just he has a lot more ground to makeup. The -- he's behind in five out of six swing states. He's especially behind if you look at the polling right now in Arizona. He's behind even in Michigan by big digits and in Nevada.

And in fact, in the last week, we saw polling that Biden -- that Trump is now competitive in the states of Minnesota and Virginia, which are Democratic stronghold.

So, Biden certainly has a lot more to lose with this debate and a lot more ground to make up with it.

NEWTON: Then, one would argue much more to gain. I mean, Lanhee, at this point in terms of giving the former President Trump some advice here, you know, he can at times hue to the traditional end of the Republican Party.

I know a few months ago, he was interviewed by Fox News really started to dig down into the issues. Do you think he's capable of doing that again, here in this debate? That is certainly what his aides are saying he's aiming to do.

CHEN: I think he's capable of it. I think the question is whether Joe Biden is successful, maybe at laying some traps for him to walk away from a discussion about issues and to go to terrain, where the Biden team, for example, feels that the former president may be more vulnerable.

But if Donald Trump is able to stick to talking about cost of living issues, the economy, immigration issues where we know public opinion, polling has told us over and over again, he has a commanding lead. That is something that will work to his advantage.

And I know that the Trump team has instilled this sort of ethos in him to say, listen, the more you stick to the issues, the better this debate is going to be.

But this is really two humans debating at the end of the day, and that's why there's some unpredictability about where this goes, and whether in fact, they both stick to the issues or not, we'll have to see.

Once things get started, it can be very difficult to control where that discussion goes, particularly when these two are involved.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: All right, you can tune in to see the presidential debate coming up on Thursday 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN and we'll replay the entire debate a few different times. You can watch the first replay starting at 7:00 a.m. London time, that's 2:00 p.m. in Hong Kong. Stay with CNN for all the pre and post-debate chatter as well.

Still ahead for us, Russia's trial of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich began Wednesday, what the U.S. is saying about the espionage charges against it. That's next.

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NEWTON: The White House is expressing its support for American journalist Evan Gershkovich after his espionage trial in Russia on Wednesday, they're condemning the proceedings as "a sham and a performance."

The U.S. is also accusing Moscow of cheat treating their scourge and other detained Americans as bargaining chip.

CNN's Matthew Chance has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: This is the first glimpse of Evan Gershkovich for months. Cameras briefly allowed into the courthouse about 1,000 miles from Moscow, where his trial for espionage is finally underway.

His head shaved, the 32-year-old "The Wall Street Journal" reporter looked calm but he faces a sentence of up to 20 years, if or likely when he's found guilty.

The statement the editor in chief of "The Journal" wrote, "This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man."

CHANCE: Hi, Matthew from CNN.

You holding up all right?

No questions.

CHANCE (voice-over): After 15 months, Gershkovich has been held been held under tight security in Moscow's notorious Lefortovo prison.

He, his employer and the U.S. government will vigorously deny the spying allegations against him. But Russia appears determined to press ahead, despite official U.S. objections.

A new statement from the U.S. embassy in Moscow says, "Evan did not commit any illegal acts and should not have been arrested at all. This trial isn't about the presentation of evidence, due process or the rule of law. We're talking about the Kremlin using American citizens to achieve its political goals," the statement adds.

With the conflict raging in Ukraine, Russia began a crackdown at home on free speech, silencing dissidents or forcing them into exile. It's against this backdrop that Gershkovich was arrested on a reporting assignment in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg.

CHANCE (voice-over): This is video from the website of the tank factory there, where Russian prosecutors allege Gershkovich acted, quote, "on the instructions of the CIA" to collect secret information although no evidence has been made public.

The trial will take place in the city, which is about 1,000 miles from Moscow, amid an outcry.

LESTER HOLT, NBC HOST: Journalism is not a crime.

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST: Journalism is not a crime.

CHANCE (voice-over): Some of the most prominent journalists in the United States are calling for his release. And Tucker Carlson even appealed directly to Putin in his recent sitdown.

TUCKER CARLSON, TV HOST: And I just want to ask you directly without getting into the details of it your version of what happened, if as a sign of your decency you would be willing to release him to us and we'll bring him back to the United States. VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA (through translator): What we have done so many gestures of goodwill out of decency that I think we have run out of them.

CHANCE (voice-over): But they're not running out of Americans in Russian prisons; far from it.

PAUL WHELAN, AMERICAN, PRISONER IN RUSSIA: I am innocent of any kind of political kidnapping.

CHANCE (voice-over): Former Marine Paul Whelan is serving 16 years for what U.S. officials say were trumped-up spying charges. Dual citizens Ksenia Karelina, an amateur ballerina from L.A., and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva are also in custody, as are Gordon Black, a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army and U.S. school teacher Marc Fogel.

[02:25:21]

Critics suspect the Kremlin is collecting U.S. citizens as bargaining chips for a future deal. With this trial for espionage now underway, Evan Gershkovich is one of the most valuable in the Kremlin's hand.

Matthew Chance, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now, it was hailed as a successful hostage rescue by Israel but for one Palestinian family the operation absolutely devastated their lives, we'll share their story, ahead.

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NEWTON: The Israeli Prime Minister's office says the government is looking for Gaza civilians as well as countries in the region to run the territory after the war ends, but did not give any details but it did make clear that day would come only once Hamas is defeated.

Inside Gaza, the fighting though continues and a warning, the images you are about to see are disturbing.

Hospital officials say an Israeli airstrike in the northern part of the enclave killed at least eight Palestinians including three children. Gaza's civil defense team say several more people are believed to be trapped under a collapsed building.

Meantime, U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths is expressing his concern over the possibility that the war on Gaza might expand across the region including the West Bank and Lebanon. Those concerns only heightened by reports of new cross border attacks on Israel's northern border with Lebanon.

Lebanese state media says at least 19 people were injured after Israel launched two surface air -- two surface missiles on the southern city of Nabatieh. The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to CNN's request for comment. Earlier, Israel said firefighters responded to fires in two buildings in the northern part of the country that it says were the result of rocket fire from Lebanon.

Now, a few weeks ago, you'll remember the rescue of four hostages by Israeli forces was hailed as a daring success in Israel.

[02:30:00]

But scores of Palestinian families found themselves caught in the middle of the operation, suffering truly unimaginable loss. Paula Hancocks pieces together the evidence to see how the ripple effects of the rescue affected civilian lives that day, and a warning, this report contains disturbing images.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): By the time Israeli forces leave this house in central Gaza, one woman and three children have been shot. A 12-year-old boy clings to life. This is the story of one Gazan family caught up in the June 8th rescue of four Israeli hostages being held in Nuseirat.

When Abdul Raouf, the grandfather and owner of the house, saw tanks and special forces arrive on their street, he says his family of 14 hid in one room in the top-floor apartment. What happened next has been relayed to us by seven members of the same family in multiple interviews. Mohammed Miqdad (ph)], father of four, says he heard the soldiers screaming, shooting, and throwing stun grenades downstairs.

CNN has verified that this IDF video shows troops inside the house. It appears heavily edited, but you can hear what sounds like shots fired. They came up to the apartment, the father adds, shooting and saying who is here? We told them we are civilians, children and women are in this room.

The boy's aunt says the Israelis came and started shooting at us. I heard someone groaning in pain. This is the blood of my son, Yamen says Rasha. He was bleeding here. As soon as the Israelis entered, they shot him. There were bullets in his leg and stomach. 12-year-old Yamen later died from his wounds.

My son died before my eyes and I couldn't do anything, she says. He was looking at me saying, mum, hold me, I'm bleeding. Rasha says another son, Mumen, 16, was shot in the shoulder and stomach. She wanted to help, but she says the soldiers threatened to kill them if she did. Another shot grazed the third son, the bullet striking his aunt in the leg.

CNN has geo-located the buildings the hostages were rescued from, the family home is over a kilometer away on a likely evacuation route the Israeli military used to extract the hostages from Gaza. The IDF says the battalion was there to secure the area during the operation.

Inside the house, the grandfather says, he and Yamen's father were taken to the corridor, hands tied behind their back, gagged, and blindfolded, pointing at the plastic head cover left behind. The father says, a soldier warned him, tell me where the resistance fighters and weapons are or I will break your heart for your children, and he did it. He went to the room a minute later and I heard the gunshots.

It's not clear if any of the family members were hit in the second round of shooting. CNN has reached out to the IDF, but they have not responded to the specific allegations. The family's testimony matches evidence CNN saw at the scene. We've shown images of the bullet casings on the ground to weapons experts who confirmed they are Israeli manufactured.

The grandfather points to multiple bullet holes in walls, doors, and furniture on different floors of the building. The family says Israeli troops were in their home for around 45 minutes. One soldier applied a dressing to Mumen's shoulder wound before they left. Outside, the grandfather tries to call an ambulance. He's told they cannot reach him. So the boys are loaded into a car and rushed to hospital where Yamen is pronounced dead.

Gaza health officials say more than 270 people were killed that day, no breakdown of fighters versus civilians, but this hospital footage shows women and children in every corner. Israel says the death toll is far lower, blaming Hamas for hiding hostages within the civilian population. One family's story, one small window into a day of hell for the residents of Nuseirat.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: British voters are just days away from deciding whether Rishi Sunak and his Conservative Party will continue to lead the country, details from London after the break.

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[02:36:50]

NEWTON: Just one week to go before Britain's general election and it looks like Labour leader Keir Starmer could become the next prime minister, as the Tories led by current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak continue to sink in the polls. Sunak and Starmer went head-to-head on Wednesday in their last debate before the July 4th election. Starmer says his Labour Party is best suited to lead the country out of a cost of living crisis and soaring inflation. And Sunak accused his rival of not being straightforward about his plans for taxes, women's rights, and illegal migrants. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RISHI SUNAK, PRIME MINISTER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: We need to make it crystal clear to people that if they come to our country illegally, they won't be able to stay. And that's why if I'm your prime minister on July 5th, the flights will go to Rwanda. We will build that deterrent, that multiple other European countries now agree is the right way to deal with this problem and that's how we solve this problem. If Keir Starmer is your prime minister, all those illegal migrants will be out on our streets and that is the choice for you. Do not surrender our borders to the Labour Party.

KEIR STARMER, LEADER OF THE LABOUR PARTY, UNITED KINGDOM: Why are record numbers still coming under your watch, Prime Minister? How on earth can you say it's working? You put the scheme in place; the flights could go off. I notice you called the election by the way, before any flights could actually get off, when it could be tested, the interesting timing. But if this was such a deterrent, why is it obviously -- obviously, not working?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: CNN's Nic Robertson now with the latest from London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Elections close, U.K. PM Rishi Sunak's Conservative Party facing an historic drubbing.

GIDEON SKINNER, SENIOR U.K. DIRECTOR OF POLITICS, IPSOS: The polls are showing that the Conservatives are in a (inaudible) difficult position. Our central estimate was having the Conservatives around about 115 seats.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): 650 seats at stake, each week of campaigning damaging Sunak more than the last. The British prime minister left D- Day Commemorations in France early.

SUNAK: On reflection, that was a mistake and I apologize.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): More damaging allegations followed. Several of his senior staff belch (ph)] on the unexpected July 4th election date.

SUNAK: Well, I was incredibly angry.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Good for his main opponent, Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer you'd think, not so much. Labour, like Conservative, have dropped a little in the polls.

SKINNER: I have maybe two to three points. The big picture is still that Labour have got on average a fairly healthy lead.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Healthy, meaning about 20 percentage points. Starmer's challenge most voters aren't sure what he stands for. Recently, praising his socialist predict Jeremy Corbyn, now booted from Labour, saying he would have been a better prime minister than Donald Trump friend Boris Johnson.

STARMER: Look, look what we got, Boris Johnson, a man who made massive promises, didn't keep them.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Labour's left-wing legacy haunts Starmer, a centrist. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You said you'd make a great prime minister. Did you mean it?

STARMER: It wasn't a question that really arose because I didn't think we were going to win the election.

(CROWD CHEERING)

[02:40:00]

ROBERTSON (voice-over): His skill so far, uniting his once fractious party. Not so for Sunak, right-wing Tory voters increasingly tempted by the upstart right-wing disruptive Reform Party led by Nigel Farage.

NIGEL FARAGE, LEADER OF REFORM UNITED KINGDOM: Thanks for coming everybody.

(CROWD CHEERING)

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Another friend of Trump, who almost a decade ago led the charge for Brexit, now back in the political fray, as ever, pulling the country right, costing Sunak voters. The field, though, bigger than these three leading parties. Middle-class, middle of the road, liberal democrats, struggling for attention.

ED DAVEY, LEADER OF THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS, UNITED KINGDOM: I don't think politicians should take themselves too seriously.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): His stunts paying off, Lib Dem polling up slightly, mostly at Sunak's expense. Starmer looking to benefit in Scotland too, the powerful but scandal hit independence-driven Scottish National Party, SNP, onto their third leader in 15 months.

JOHN SWINNEY, FIRST MINISTER OF SCOTLAND: Be careful what you wish for, because the Labour Party is going to pick up where the Tories left off.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): But despite their tough talk, likely losing their dominance north of the border. Polls are notorious, there's no hard guarantee of actual results and if the most favorable outcome for Sunak is an historic loss, the worst could leave his party and a political wilderness for years, vulnerable to populace like Farage.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: And be sure to watch CNN's Special Coverage of the U.K. Elections on July 4th. It starts just before 5:00 p.m. here in New York, that's a little before 10:00 p.m. in London.

And I want to thank you for joining us. I'm Paula Newton. "World Sport" is next. The "CNN Newsroom" continues though at the top of the hour with Max Foster in London.

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