UK's landmark postwar elections: When Thatcher became the first female prime minister in 1979

Britain’s upcoming general election is widely expected to lead to a change of government for the first time in 14 years. Many analysts believe it will be one of the country’s most consequential elections since the end of World War II. One significant election was the one in May 1979, which saw Margaret Thatcher become the country’s first female prime minister on a radical Conservative economic agenda. She won a sizeable majority in the election and stayed in power for more than 11 years.