As scandals overshadow vote, UK PM Johnson faces election test

FILE PHOTO: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson points across the floor during Prime Minister's Questions at the House of Commons in London, Britain April 27, 2022. UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor/Handout via REUTERS

LONDON (Reuters) -Voters in Britain went to the polls in local government elections on Thursday where they are expected to punish Prime Minister Boris Johnson over a cost-of-living crisis and fines for breaking his own COVID-19 lockdown rules.

The elections are seen as a test of support for Johnson, who became the first British leader in living memory to have broken the law while in office when he was fined last month for attending a birthday gathering in his office in 2020.