In January I wrote about Keir Starmer’s horoscope. There was no point in trying to predict that he would win the leadership contest, because by that stage his victory was obvious. Now that he has won the contest, everyone wants to know whether or not he is going to be Prime Minister. When considering this question, his horoscope is of little value, because we don’t know what time he was born. Hopefully this information will emerge, over the coming weeks and months.
If we wanted to not use astrology, and instead use political judgement, one would probably say that the COVID-19 pandemic has made it more likely that Keir Starmer will become Prime Minister. Brexit isn’t the main issue, and there have been questions about the UK government’s handling of the crisis. Starmer’s style also suits the crisis. He has an aura of being calm and sensible, and he doesn’t have the bombast of Boris Johnson. Britain needs efficiency, not flag-waving. Starmer is further helped that Britain, and the rest of the world, is about to go into recession. When people haven’t got money and haven’t got a job, they tend to blame the government.
Starmer’s horoscope does suggest the kind of person who might become popular in the current crisis:
A sensible Virgo, with Mercury, planet of the intellect, making a favourable aspect to Saturn, the planet of discipline. Furthermore, he has the Moon, Mercury and Venus in Libra. He knows how to compromise, and he gives the impression of being reasonable.
We then come to the moment Starmer was elected leader. The announcement was at 10.45 a.m., on April 4 2020. It was done by email, rather than at a special conference. I have take the location for the announcement as London:
In this chart the Moon is important. It represent process, and it is also ruler of the Cancer ascendant. Furthermore, the Moon is the people, the electorate. Unfortunately, the Moon is in poor shape. It is in Leo, a sign where it has no essential dignity, and it is also void of course. This means that it has made its last aspect before leaving the sign. Put simply, the chart is going nowhere. Matters aren’t helped by the fact that there is a conjunction between Mercury and Neptune in the Tenth House. For all Starmer’s competence, his leadership will eventually lose direction.
Having said all that, I don’t think the poor leadership chart in itself means that he won’t become Prime Minister. We should perhaps look at the broader picture. If one wants to compare Starmer with a previous Labour leader, the obvious comparison is Clement Attlee, who won the 1945 General Election, and is regarded as one of Britain’s best Prime Ministers.
Clement Attlee, like Keir Starmer, was not known for his charisma. And he was a down-to-earth Capricorn. The two men also had titles, which gave the impression that they were a safe pair of hands. Attlee was an officer in the First World War, and for much of his political career he was known as Major Attlee. Starmer has a knighthood, which makes him Sir Keir Starmer.
Another parallel is their predecessors. Sir Keir Starmer’s predecessor was Jeremy Corbyn. Many people, without a sense of history, regard Corbyn as the worst leader of the Labour Party ever. Corbyn was a left-winger, who at times seemed sympathetic to Britain’s enemies. However the worst leader was almost certainly George Lansbury. Lansbury was a pacifist, who was an out and out advocate of appeasement with Mussolini and Hitler, He opposed sanctions against Italy when they invaded Abyssinia, and publically stated that he wanted all recruiting offices for the Army and Air Force shut down.
Clement Attlee became leader of the Labour Party on October 25 1945:
The chart is set for midday, because I don’t have the time. I should say that on October 25 Attlee became interim leader of the party – there wasn’t time to hold a full election, because of an imminent general election. After the election, in late November and early December, there was a formal leadership contest, which Attlee won. From an astrological perspective, I regard the key date as October 25, when Attlee started become Labour Party leader.
If we take the October 25 chart, we can see why Clement Attlee eventually became Prime Minister. The Moon was not void of course – it was applying to a conjunction of Mercury. And Mercury was strong, because it was in Libra, in mutual reception to Venus in Virgo. Another interesting point about the chart is that the Sun is moving to an opposition of Uranus. This probably indicates the approach of the Second World War, which helped propel Attlee to power.
My point is, that there are superficial similaries between Keir Starmer and Clement Attlee, but Attlee had the advantage of a fortunate chart for the beginning of his leadership.
But will Keir Starmer ever be Prime Minister? I asked myself this horary question at 3.42.30 pm on Sunday April 5, in Lakewood, Washington State. The chart I got was as follow, using Regiomontanus house cusps:
I don’t know Keir Starmer. He is just another person. Therefore I take him as the Seventh House and its ruler, Jupiter. Jupiter is in Capricorn, the sign of its fall. It is also in the terms (Egyptian) of Saturn, and has no essential dignity. This is not a good sign.
The Moon is in Virgo. Like Jupiter, it has no essential dignity. It is moving to a trine of Jupiter, but first it reaches an opposition with Mercury. I would have said that Mercury represents Starmer’s opponents. Mercury is not in a great position, being in Pisces, the sign of its fall, close to the cusp of the Eighth House of death. This probaby describes Boris John, who has now been moved into intensive care. However, Mercury is in mixed reception, by sign and exaltation, with Venus in Gemini. The Tories have strength, regardless of what happens to Boris.
Overall, the horary isn’t strong enough to make Starmer Prime Minister. So my judgement is, all things being considered, that Keir Starmer will never be British Prime Minister.