The elections of 2026 in Scotland, Wales, and across much of England were politically explosive. In Westminster, the disastrous performance of the governing Labour Party precipitated the fall of Keir Starmer and the accession of Andy Burnham. Their Conservative rivals went backwards, underlining the continued existential threats facing Europe's oldest political party. Challenger parties on the left and right, meanwhile, surged and the Welsh government is now, as in Scotland and Northern Ireland, led by a nationalist party. In this special collection, political scientists, historians, and commentators dissect and contextualise these elections and their aftermath, drawing out the key insights for understanding the past, present and future of British politics.