"If the polls are to be believed then there are a number of seats that will come into play that we perhaps haven't considered in the past", said party vice chairman and Pudsey MP Stuart Andrew.
With the main opposition Labour Party weakened and divided under left-wing leader Jeremy Corbyn and the pro-EU Liberal Democrats holding just nine Commons seats, May is calculating that the election will bring her an expanded crop of Conservative lawmakers. Leaders of European Union states are due to adopt negotiating guidelines at an April 29 summit, and the bloc will prepare detailed plans for the talks with Britain by late May.
It will give the Prime Minister the opportunity to pursue her own mandate, after she inherited the leadership following the resignation of David Cameron in the wake of the Brexit referendum last July.
"Because Brexit isn't just about the letter that says we want to leave, it's about negotiating the deal, about getting the right deal from Europe". The idea that she would call a snap election initially was dismissed in light of her previous flat denials, but once the other possibilities were eliminated, an election was all that could remain.
May's Conservatives now hold 330 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons.
European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas said that "the real political negotiations on Article 50 with the United Kingdom will start after the elections foreseen for June 8".
For a politician who has cultivated a reputation as a straight shooter who puts country before party, the about-face on early elections could smack of opportunism.
Family of United passenger holds press conference
Spicer adds that he thinks everyone who has seen the video can agree that the situation could have been handled better . A lawyer for a man dragged off a United Express flight says airlines have "bullied" passengers "for a long time".
"Accountability and reliability are more important than ever after the Brexit vote of the Britons", Gabriel told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper chain in an interview, noting that periods of uncertainty were not helpful for EU-British relations. "There can be no turning back", she said.
Theresa May told the BBC in an interview on Wednesday that an early election is in the national interest because it will strengthen the country's position in negotiations to leave the European Union. She is clearly counting on a strong performance in June - before those talks get serious and difficult, before the British economy is seen to be hit and before critical German elections in the fall - to carry her government through the exit, hard or soft, which she has promised to deliver.
Opinion polls suggest May's Conservatives are enjoying a huge lead over Labour. This morning's latest poll puts Labour on 23 per cent with the LibDems on 12, UKIP on 10 and the Tories on 44.
Sturgeon said Tuesday that May was seeking "to crush the voices of people who disagree with her".
SNP deputy leader at Westminster Stewart Hosie said his party would act as a "bulwark" against a "hard Tory Brexit government".
The pound surged 0.7 percent against the dollar to $1.2658 after May's announcement, recovering from a 0.4 percent drop an hour earlier as rumors swirled about the surprise statement.
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