As voters in the United Kingdom are heading to the polls on Thursday in what might be the most important general election in recent history, N1’s Domagoj Novokmet spoke with Joy Lo Dico, a journalist at the Financial Times. She commented on the current British Prime Minister and Tory party leader, Boris Johnson, as well as the possible outcome of the vote.

“I’ve known him (Johnson) for about 20 years. He was a journalist first, he edited a magazine called the Spectator… and I’ve known his family for a long time. He’s a nice man. He’s fun, he’s interesting, he is a provocateur,” Lo Dico said.

“How do I feel about him now being a Prime Minister? Well that is slightly more questionable because there is a gravitas and a responsibility towards being a Prime Minister that journalists, particularly provocateur journalists do not necessarily have,” she added.

The latest polls have given a slight edge to Johnson ahead of his main opponent, Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn, but Tory lead has been dropping dramatically in the last days ahead of the election, injecting uncertainty in the outcome of the vote.

“His (Johnson's) reign so far, since he was chosen in July, has been quite turbulent… He’s expecting the British public to vote him in, and the polling is showing a small-to-medium victory for Boris Johnson,” she said. “The question is what he does next.”

It seems there has been a shift in the last few days towards Corbyn, she said, adding Corbyn has led “a far more dignified campaign.”

“He (Corbyn) is a socialist, some people regard him as a very hard socialist, but he has not made mistakes or gaffes,” she added.

“Although the polls are indicating a victory for Boris, although he has a very simple message of getting Brexit done, I would put a question mark over what will happen in the next 24 hours,” Lo Dico said.

The polls, which opened on Thursday morning, will close at 22 local time, and first results are expected to come in at around 2 am.