Cameron savors shock triumph in British election

British Prime Minister David Cameron swept to a stunning election victory on Friday, confounding forecasts that the vote would be the closest in decades and winning a clear majority that left his Labour opponents in tatters.

The sterling currency, bonds and shares surged on a result that reversed near-universal expectations of an inconclusive "hung parliament", in which Cameron would have had to jockey for power with Labour rival Ed Miliband.

Instead, Cameron met Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace to accept a mandate to form the first majority Conservative government since John Major's surprise victory in 1992.

Despite the unexpectedly decisive outcome, longer-term uncertainty looms over whether Britain will stay in the European Union - and even hold together as a country. Secessionists swept the board in Scotland, and Cameron repeated a promise to hold a referendum on EU membership.

The scale of his triumph surpassed his party's most optimistic projections. "This is the sweetest victory of all," Cameron, 48, told enthusiastic supporters at party headquarters.

Smiling beside his wife Samantha, he returned to the prime minister's office in Downing Street after meeting the queen. Staff lined up to applaud when he entered the residence.

With all results declared in the 650-seat house, the Conservatives held 331 and Labour 232. The center-left Liberal Democrats, who supported Cameron in government since 2010, were all but wiped out, reduced to eight seats from 57. - Read More

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