Brexit is expected to be the central factor behind voting patterns, including for the estimated 1.5 million Indian-origin voters.

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Millions of people across the UK are set to vote in the general election under the two deadly terror attacks that rocked the country in the past three weeks. Voting will begin at 7 am UK time (11.30 am IST) in over 40,000 polling stations across the country, the BBC reported.

To form a majority in the House of Commons, one party must win 326 seats.

A total of 650 Westminster MPs will be elected, with about 46.9 million people registered to vote. Some votes have already been cast, through postal voting. A handful of seats will be declared by Thursday midnight, with the final results expected on Friday afternoon.

Theresa May's ruling Conservatives are on 44 percent, Labour at 34 percent, the Liberal Democrats at 9 percent, with far-right UKIP at 5 per cent, the Scottish National Party (SNP) at 4 per cent and the Green Party at 2 percent.Betfair, another leading bookmaker, also views the Tories as the odds-on favourite to winthe general election, with odds of 1/12.

The final pre-poll survey done by Comres for the Independent newspaper gives the Tories a 10-point lead over the Labour part.

Polling Stations are usually set up at public buildings and schools and the easiest way to find out your polling centre is by checking the election card that you may have recieved by post. You can also visit About My Vote website to find out more details. Since the polling will start at around 7 am (EST) and remain open till 10 pm, there would be plenty of time to caste your vote.

The Liberal Democrats have been focused on their Remain-voting target seats, while the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) has stuck to its central message of ensuring there is no back-tracking on Brexit.

Brexit is expected to be the central factor behind voting patterns, including for the estimated 1.5 million Indian-origin voters.

Britain's election this year appears tighter than expected, as Brexit negotiations draw closer and threat from terrorism looms large over the country. Even polling experts — many of whom failed to predict the referendum vote to leave the European Union last year — are now wary of calling the outcome.

According to a report in Independent a record numbers of people registered to vote on the final day (Wednesday), with almost 600,000 names added to the electoral roll within 24 hours.

The Scottish Nationalists (left), Welsh nationalists Plaid Cymru (left) and four parties from Northern Ireland also won seats at the last general election in 2015.

The main parties across the whole of Britain are the Conservatives (centre-right), led by Theresa May, and Labour (left), led by Jeremy Corbyn, followed by the Liberal Democrats (centre-left), the UK Independence Party (populist) and the Greens (left).

Tim Farron has launched a last-ditch plea for Labour voters to back the party in it's strongholds, touring cities like including London, Bath and Oxford that have traditionally voted for the party, The Guardian reported.

It's 7 am (EST) and the polling stations have opened as much remains at stake in the tight race competition. The outcome of the polls will determine who gets to negotiate Britain's departure from the EU over the next two years, and the strength of mandate that the government will have in parliament for five years.

Theresa May, said "enough is enough" and vowed to clamp down on extremism, even if that means watering down human rights laws. Corbyn has promised to fund an extra 10,000 police officer jobs.

The deadly terror attacks just weeks ahead of the elections have pushed national security to the top of the agenda in Britain's snap election, which anyway entailed high-stakes owing to the Brexit negotions facing the country. The key candidates have all vowed to take a tough stance in uprooting terrorism.

Of late, with the rise of the social media, British citizens have given rise to a unique trend by posting pictures of their dogs at the polling station. It's now a staple part of any election or vote in the country since the general elections of 2015. The trend also reappeared during the EU referendum, and today it's again doing rounds as Britishers walk their dogs to the polling stations.

Barely an hour after polling stations opened in Britain, more people were reading about Singer Shania Twain's concert than about election related news. News of twain throwing a surprise concert in London topped Google trends, while election related keywords ranked at the third spot.

"I have little confidence in anybody," added voter Simon Bolton, 41. "I think we lack quality in terms of who we can choose, it is very limited."

"I don't think it has really been a campaign, we don't know anything about what they are going to do about Brexit, it's been pointless really," said Joe Kerney, 53, at a polling station in Hackney, east London.

It is the third time Britain has gone to the polls in two years, twice for a general election and once for the EU referendum, and voter fatigue appeared to be an issue among the early voters.

With no policy change expected, market players are focusing on how the central bank may alter its economic assessment and policy guidance in light of a strengthening euro zone economy.

Asian stocks benchmarks were fairly steady Thursday as investors parsed economic data and awaited market-moving events in Europe, including Britain's general election and a European Central Bank meeting. "MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS was little changed, through China edged up on unexpectedly solid trade data, while Japan's Nikkei .N225 dropped 0.4 percent," according to Reuters.

May and her Brexit minister David Davis have repeatedly warned that "no deal is better than a bad deal", particularly when it comes to a 100-billion-euro exit bill that Brussels is demanding.

"A big punch-up or blow-up is not unlikely" after Brexit negotiations formally start, an EU source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

While many in Brussels still bet on Prime Minister Theresa May's return to power, despite a fading poll lead, the real focus is on British threats to walk out when the talks start.

The EU is steeling for a possible collapse of Brexit negotiations whoever wins Britain's increasingly close general election this week, officials and analysts say.

According to a report in Mirror , "one brave Paddy Power punter placed a cool £75,000" bet on the Conservative party emerging as the single largest party in the poll outcomes. The massive bet was made at odds of 1/14, meaning a potential return of just over £80,000, the report said.

According to The Guardian , early voters in Northern Ireland braced bad weather to cast their votes. Heavy showers, possibly hail and thunder was reported in many regions this morning, however, the bad weather is likely to moderate later in the day.

Follow this space for the profiles of all the key candidates.

In Britain's one of most crucial general elections, the country will be be choosing its leader who will steer it through the Brexit negotiations. In a Tory vs Labour war, adds are favouring Conservative Theresa May. However, Labour Jeremy Corby is perceived to be the strongest Labour contender in recent times.

Terrorism: "I'm clear: if human rights laws get in the way of tackling extremism and terrorism, we will change those laws to keep British people safe," May said. She has said "enough is enough" and vowed to clamp down on extremism, even if that means watering down human rights laws.

Brexit: May has already outlined her negotiating demands, saying she will seek a departure from the European Union's single market and an end to free movement of people.

Immigration: May has promised that Britain will end freedom of movement with European citizens following Brexit.

In the blue corner — traditional color of the Conservative Party — is Theresa May, a 60-year-old lawmaker known in her party as a quietly effective operator. A former advocate of remaining in the EU, she now promises to press forward with Brexit, taking Britain out of the bloc, reducing immigration and forging a new relationship with the UK's European neighbors. Here's what her stand has been on key issues.

"I'm very proud of our campaign," he said.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn grinned broadly and gave the thumbs-up to reporters and party workers as he voted in Islington, north London.

A smiling May did not speak to media as she and her husband Philip voted in the village of Sonning on the River Thames in her Maidenhead constituency.

A flurry of opinion polls on Wednesday gave Theresa May's Conservatives a lead ranging between one and 12 percentage points over the main opposition Labour Party, suggesting she would increase her majority - but not win the landslide foreseen when she called the election seven weeks ago.

May unexpectedly called the snap election seven weeks ago to increase the slim majority she had inherited from predecessor David Cameron and strengthen her hand before launching into arduous divorce talks with the European Union, set to start in just over a week.

The exit poll predicted the Conservatives would win 314 seats in the 650-member parliament and the leftist opposition Labour Party 266 -- a "hung parliament" with no clear winner.

Theresa May spectacularly lost her electoral gamble, according to an exit poll that suggested her Conservatives would fall short of a majority in parliament, throwing her Brexit plans into disarray.

May unexpectedly called the snap election seven weeks ago to increase the slim majority she had inherited from predecessor David Cameron and strengthen her hand before launching into arduous divorce talks with the European Union, set to start in just over a week.

The exit poll predicted the Conservatives would win 314 seats in the 650-member parliament and the leftist opposition Labour Party 266 -- a "hung parliament" with no clear winner.

Theresa May spectacularly lost her electoral gamble, according to an exit poll that suggested her Conservatives would fall short of a majority in parliament, throwing her Brexit plans into disarray.

The main opposition Labour party, led by leftist Jeremy Corbyn, was on course to increase its number of seats from 229 to 266, according to the joint exit poll by Sky, the BBC and ITV.

The exit poll published as voting closed late Thursday projected May's party could fall from 330 to 314 seats, short of an overall majority in the 650-seat House of Commons.

The pound fell sharply amid fears that the Conservative leader will be unable to form a government and could even be forced out of office, after a troubled campaign overshadowed by two terror attacks.

"It is exactly the opposite of why she held the election and she then has to go and negotiate Brexit in that weakened position."

"It if turns out as the exit polls are suggesting then Theresa May is going to have no parliamentary majority or a tiny one," said Professor Tony Travers of the London School of Economics.

Theresa May is now facing questions over her judgment in calling the election three years early, risking further upheaval as Britain negotiates a complicated exit from the European Union, the first country to leave the bloc.

Jeremy Corbyn is all smiles as he arrives at the counting centre

So how did it all go wrong for the punters yet again? To read more, click The Economist's coverage here

In the Brexit referendum and the 2016 US presidential elections, betting markets and punters all got the outcome wrong. But they seem to not have learnt their lesson. Ahead of the 2017 Britain snap election, markets were again confident Theresa May would retain her majority. But the status quo was wrong yet again.

As the possibility of a hung Parliament looked increasingly likely, analysts warned this is the "worst possible outcome for Britain". Even as reports were still coming in, the Pound Sterling fell sharply. It fell over 1.5 percent, to $1.27 following the poll. Against the Euro, the Pound plummeted over 1 percent to 1.13 euros.

Labour's Jeremy Corbyn has retained his Islington seat by a massive margin, winning 40,086 votes as against second-placed Toby Clarke of Conservatives who got 6,871 votes.

Jeremy Corbyn made his acceptance speech on Thursday, after being elected as MP from Islington for the ninth time. "This election was called in order for the prime minister to gain a larger majority to assert her authority. The campaign has gone on for the past six weeks, I have traveled all over the country, and politics has changed. Politics is not going back into the box where it was before. Voters have had quite enough of cuts in public expenditure, underfunding in the NHS and in our schools. I am proud of the results that are coming in tonight across the country — voting for hope in the future and turning their backs on austerity," he said.

Prime Minister Theresa May won 37,718 seats, to retain her Maidenhead constituency, even as questions over her future as leader of the Conservative party and her position as British PM continued to circulate.

After clinching her victory from Maidenhead constituency, prime minister Theresa May said, "It is a huge honour and a privilege to be elected as the MP for this constituency. I pledge that I will continue to work for all my constituents. As we look more widely across the country, returns are still coming in. We are yet to see the full picture emerging. This country needs a period of stability. If the Conservative Party has won the most seats, it will be incumbent on us to deliver this period of stability."

The Telegraph has put together a detailed report on the possibilities in case there is a hung Parliament. To read the full report, click here

If no party manages to cross the magic figure of 326 required to have a majority in the House of Commons, the incumbent prime minister — in this case, Theresa May — stays in office until it is decided who will attempt to form a new government.

Counting day is getting worse for the Scottish National Party, which has seen Angus Robertson lose from Moray. The seat had been a key target for the SNP in Scotland. Speaking from Glasgow, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon said the result will be a "big loss" for the party. She explained there is "clearly uncertainty" around Brexit and Scottish independence, which played a factor in the party's performance. She added that the SNP has a "lot of thinking to do". Sturgeon also stressed that this is still the second-best result the SNP has enjoyed in a Westminster election.

Election night headlines in Britain pointed on Friday to looming political turbulence and an uncertain future for Prime Minister Theresa May. "Britain on a knife edge," headlined the pro-May Daily Mail, while the conservative The Sun described the situation as "Mayhem," saying there was fear of a "coalition of chaos" led by the opposition Labour party.

Scotland National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon has claimed a victory for the SNP, saying losses were inevitable given the high watermark of 2015 when it went into the election with just 11 seats. "One of the biggest issues tonight UK-wide is the fact this is a disaster for Theresa May. She called this election...tonight she has had an absolutely disastrous performance," Sturgeon said, adding that she said she was "not going to make any rash decisions at 4am in the morning".

Former Scottish National party leader Alex Salmond has lost his Gordon seat, the second major setback for the SNP, after Angus Robertson lost from Moray. The Conservatives now have 10 Scottish seats, and are likely to demand SNP drops its quest for a second independence referendum. Speaking after his defeat, Salmond said his parliamentary career had been “the privilege of my life". "I’m grateful for these times. For the activists in the SNP who have made the many electoral successes possible," he said, adding that "the public had not seen the last of him".

A late surge from the Conservatives has given the party 282 seats, giving the party a solid 40-seat advantage over Labour which has 240. Until recently, the latter was enjoying a 20-seat lead of its own.

An incredible late surge by Theresa May's Conservatives has given the party a firm advantage heading into the home stretch. The party has now 294 seats, with 40 still to be counted. The magic figure of 326 needed to pull off an absolute majority is looking a realistic possibility once again for PM May.

BBC has reported that the word from Tories' headquarters may be to ask Prime Minister Theresa May to soften her approach, or to adopt a more inclusive working style, as it has been felt that her reach is limited to a tiny group of close aides. BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg wrote that the PM is "famed for her stubbornness", which could have worked against her.

Tories may let PM Theresa May continue, but ask her 'to soften approach'

The Press Association has reported that there are now 192 female MPs in the British House of Commons, which is a record high, one more than the 191 number achieved in 2015. That again was a big improvement on the 2010 figure, when only 143 out of 650 MPs were women.

And even though there is no deadline, the government is expected to be formed by 13 June, which when the new Parliament meets for the first time.

The Labour Party does not need to wait for May to exhause all her options to form a government.

In case of a hung parliament, the Conservative government remains in office until it is decided who will form the new government or unless Theresa May decides to resign.

According to BBC , it is possible for the Labour Party to form the government in this case with the support of other parties.

What happens if no one wins the election?

Since Theresa May's Conservatives emerged the single largest party in the House of Commons, the prime minister will get first shot at stitching together a coalition. However, given her tough stance on Brexit, she may find it hard to secure allies ready to back her.

Results from Northern Ireland are coming in, and it looks like 10 seats for the Democratic Unionist Party and seven for Sinn Féin, the latter still boycotting Westminster. This leaves the DUP in a very strong position, and could potentially help form the next government.

But May had been in office for just around 10 months when she called for elections. She had not taken any major decisions during this period to capture the attention of the voters. Throughout this period, she was largely preoccupied with setting in motion the process of Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union, as mandated by the British citizens in a referendum last year.

Why then has May failed where Thatcher or Gandhi succeeded? It could be because when Gandhi or Thatcher called for early elections by a year, they had already been in power for four years and had taken some policy decisions and implemented certain astute programmes that had captured the imagination of the voters. Voters had no hesitation in reinforcing their faith and hope in these leaders.

When Theresa May took what she thought was a bold decision in April this year to call for elections long ahead of schedule, and opinion polls then predicted a landslide victory for her Conservative Party, there was a general feeling that she was carving a path just as Indira Gandhi and Margaret Thatcher had done before her.

Theresa May gambled on snap polls, but failed to do an Indira or Thatcher

More realistically, however, to get the Liberal Democrats, Scottish National Party, UKIP, Plaid Cymru, and the Democratic Unionist Party on the same page regarding legislation will be a near impossibility.

If neither Conservatives nor Labour is able to conjure together the numbers required to cross the 326 figure, they can technically form a "minority government", but it will be unable to pass legislations or laws without support of the other parties. For example, Labour could be a minority government with Jeremy Corbyn as prime minister — but would likely require the votes of the Scottish National Party and Liberal Democrat MPs to get things done.

The Democratic Unionist Party, which has 10 MPs in Northern Ireland, may offer support to the Tores, which could help give the party a wafer-thin majority. This could also be a boost for Prime Minister Theresa May, who may get to retain her post. But it will be an uncomfortable alliance, given the narrow margins.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has stood by his earlier demand seeking Prime Minister Theresa May's resignation, saying he is "ready to serve" his country. He also said the Brexit negotiations will have to go ahead, and that he wants a "job first Brexit". According to The Guardian, Corbyn said delaying negotiations is out of Britain’s hands. He also repeated his call for Theresa May to resign, and said it was pretty clear Labour won the election on a "strong and hopeful" programme.

Foster said any discussions about an informal agreement with the Scottish National Party would be taken over the weekend. “It’s too soon to say what we are going to do yet, we need to see the final make-up of parliament and we need to reflect on that,” she said. “There will be contact made over the weekend but it is too soon to work out what we are going to do.”

Arlene Foster, leader of Northern Ireland's DUP, has hinted she expects British Prime Minister Theresa May to stand down. "It will be difficult for her to survive given that she was presumed at the start of the campaign, which seems an awfully long time ago, to come back with maybe a hundred, maybe more, in terms of her majority,” she told BBC Radio Ulster. "Now we’re in the position we find ourselves in tonight, so it will be an incredibly difficult evening for her.”

There's still no result in West London's Kensington seat despite two recounts. The Conservatives have said they will not concede the polls, instead keep asking for further recounts, according to the BBC. As such, there's going to be a third recount, which will take place in the next day or two. But before that can happen, the officials would need to find replacement staff for the count, and may even need another venue.

As leader of the largest party in the House of Commons, British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet the Queen at 12.30 pm local time, and will stake her claim to forming a government.

DUP's deal with the Conservatives is now official, and with help from 10 MPs the Northern Ireland party brings, Tories can cross the magic figure of 326.

After spending about 15 minutes with the Queen, Theresa May has left the Buckingham Palace, The Guardian reported.

Standing in front of 10 Downing Street, May said her Conservatives and the DUP will work together to "fulfill the promise of Brexit."

After a brief meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, May said the new government will guide Britain's exit talks from the European Union, which are set to begin in just 10 days.

Speaking on Friday after Theresa May lost her majority in Parliament, Sturgeon said the prime minister had "lost all authority and credibility," and should resign.

Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon said that the Conservative Party's "reckless" approach to Brexit should be abandoned.

He said, in the letter, that the March 2019 deadline left them with no time to lose to begin the talks on Brexit.

"Our shared responsibility and urgent task now is to conduct the negotiations on the UK's withdrawal from the European Union in the best possible spirit, securing the least disruptive outcome," he wrote.

European Union President Donald Tusk took time to write British Prime Minister Theresa May in the wake of the elections.

German EU commissioner Guenther Oettinger has turned the timetable screws even more on Britain, saying negotiations on its exit from the European Union must actually be finished by October 2018, instead of March 2019, to allow the 27 remaining nations to approve the deal.

"Our two parties have enjoyed a strong relationship over many years, and this gives me the confidence to believe that we will be able to work together in the interests of the whole United Kingdom," May said.

The Democratic Unionist Party, which won 10 seats in Thursday's voting, has emerged as the most likely partner to form a coalition government. May said Friday she looks forward to working with "our friends and allies" in the DUP.

The count for UK election's last seat in London's Kensington will resume at 6pm (1pm ET) after two failed attempts https://t.co/crHxLUKcMm pic.twitter.com/epJoAznXG0

After spending about 15 minutes with the Queen, Theresa May has left the Buckingham Palace, The Guardian reported.

Standing in front of 10 Downing Street, May said her Conservatives and the DUP will work together to "fulfill the promise of Brexit."

After a brief meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, May said the new government will guide Britain's exit talks from the European Union, which are set to begin in just 10 days.

. @NicolaSturgeon warns hard #Brexit "must be abandoned" & urges MPs to help her keep UK in single market https://t.co/CVzlEK3svs #GE2017 pic.twitter.com/XPvlimUi9G

Speaking on Friday after Theresa May lost her majority in Parliament, Sturgeon said the prime minister had "lost all authority and credibility," and should resign.

Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon said that the Conservative Party's "reckless" approach to Brexit should be abandoned.

'No time to lose' on Brexit talks warns @eucopresident , President of the EU Council. Here's the letter: pic.twitter.com/mVGzNGtsFQ

He said, in the letter, that the March 2019 deadline left them with no time to lose to begin the talks on Brexit.

"Our shared responsibility and urgent task now is to conduct the negotiations on the UK's withdrawal from the European Union in the best possible spirit, securing the least disruptive outcome," he wrote.

European Union President Donald Tusk took time to write British Prime Minister Theresa May in the wake of the elections.

German EU commissioner Guenther Oettinger has turned the timetable screws even more on Britain, saying negotiations on its exit from the European Union must actually be finished by October 2018, instead of March 2019, to allow the 27 remaining nations to approve the deal.

"Our two parties have enjoyed a strong relationship over many years, and this gives me the confidence to believe that we will be able to work together in the interests of the whole United Kingdom," May said.

The Democratic Unionist Party, which won 10 seats in Thursday's voting, has emerged as the most likely partner to form a coalition government. May said Friday she looks forward to working with "our friends and allies" in the DUP.

The odds seem to be in favour of Theresa May holding on to her job as the British Prime Minister as voting is set to begin across the UK this morning under the looming shadow of the two deadly terror attacks that rocked the country in the past three weeks.

A total of 650 Westminster MPs will be elected, with about 46.9 million people registered to vote in the country. It remains to be seen if the Conservative party leader's decision to call a snap general election follows the forecast patterns of the latest opinion polls and betting odds or the Jeremy Corbyn-led Labour party is able to make a dent into her slim majority in the House of Commons.

The final pre-poll survey done by Comres for the Independent newspaper gives the Tories a 10-point lead over the Labour party.

May's ruling Conservatives are on 44 percent, Labour at 34 percent, the Liberal Democrats at 9 percent, with far-right UKIP at 5 percent, the Scottish National Party (SNP) at 4 percent and the Green Party at 2 percent.

This forecast is echoed in the nearly 100 million pounds expected to be bet on the outcome of the polls. "Generally, on average, the polls tend to point toward a fairly small Tory majority, whereas the betting is more optimistic of the prime minister landing a majority of around 70 seats," said a betting expert at Ladbrokes, one of the UK’s leading bookmakers.

Betfair, another leading bookmaker, also views the Tories as the odds-on favourite to win the general election, with odds of 1/12. However, there are some pundits who point out that the pre-poll patterns are following similar trends as for the Brexit referendum vote in June 2016, the outcome of which had taken most pollsters by surprise.

The betting odds being offering for a hung Parliament have also narrowed after some recent opinion polls had indicated the possibility of such an outcome.

Officially, it takes 326 seats for an overall majority in the House of Commons. In the 2015 general election, then Prime Minister David Cameron led Conservatives had won 331 seats, giving the Tories a small but significant majority, and the Labour party won 232 seats.

The official exit poll at the close of voting at 10 pm local time on election night is traditionally expected to give an indication of which way the vote is likely to go.

The constituency of Houghton and Sunderland South in north-east England has a history of being the first to declare the results, with the complete results expected to be clear by early on Friday morning.

Sunderland is a traditional Labour party stronghold and the vote-share with which the party holds on to the seat in the region is often seen as a sign of things to come.

Brexit is expected to be the central factor behind voting patterns, including for the estimated 1.5 million Indian-origin voters.

All the major parties wrapped up their campaigning on Thursday with a last-ditch effort to swing undecided voters. May focussed on her central message of the "strong and stable leadership" that she can provide for Britain's exit negotiations from the European Union (EU).

"Brexit is the basis of everything. We need to secure our economy for the future, we need to ensure we are getting more jobs, better paid jobs, more opportunities for young people in this country. We can do that if we get the Brexit negotiations right," she said in one of her final speeches.

Corbyn, on the other hand, focussed on his party's promise to spend more on health and education. "Never before has there been a clearer choice between the parties... a choice quite simply between hope and fear," he said.

The Liberal Democrats have been focused on their Remain-voting target seats, while the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) has stuck to its central message of ensuring there is no back-tracking on Brexit.

The UK was recently rocked by two terror attacks. Seven people were killed on Saturday when three men aboard a van ploughed into pedestrians on London Bridge and went on a stabbing spree before being shot by police.

The second attack took place on 22 May when 22 people were killed and 116 injured in a suicide bombing at Manchester Arena.